5 Dec 2011

Call for legislation to funnel PNG resource benefits to the people

11:20 am on 5 December 2011

A Papua New Guinea woman who intends to stand as an electoral candidate says the government must legislate to ensure ordinary people benefit from the country's resources boom.

Daphne Kapao, who intends to contest the Tewai-Siassi electorate in next year's poll, says in the 36 years since independence, resource extraction has only benefitted the companies involved and members of the government.

She says mining, for example, could be good for the country but at the moment it's exploitative.

"Minings are popping up all over the country. So many outsiders are coming to get what they want. And I have seen, when they leave, they're leaving people poor. When they come in, their aim is not to put up infrastructure for the people. And they leave the country very poor."

Daphne Kapao says people in rural Papua New Guinea have been neglected since independence and it's women who are suffering the most.