Press

People told not to make public statements
Source:
The National- Wednesday, January 19, 2011
By JEFFREY ELAPA
Bulolo MP Sam Basil who took the Morobe Mining Joint Venture company to court over pollution has called on people to stop making any public statement.
“I caution anyone, even the Minster for Environment and Conservation Benny Allan, who is believed to have flown to the mine site, his department and certain faction of the landowners like Rex Mauri, from making any statement on the environmental issues,” he said.
He said environmental issues and the effects of the pollution had severely affected the people and no one like Mauri who was eating from the company’s plate to make statements when people were suffering.
Basil said that the case was filed last Dec 14, through Nonggorr William lawyers.
He said that Mauri should stop using the media for his political gain and work together with suffering people.
He said the people he represented were landowners who lived adjacent to the Watut River and who continued to live within the special mining lease area that had been affected by the massive build up of sentiments, acid forming compounds, decrease of biomass of fish and prawns, causation of skin disease and pollution to washing and drinking water.
Basil said that as a mandated leader, he had to step in and allow the law to take its course than taking law into own hands.
He said Mauri should not claim that a handful of people were involved as the areas represented more than 100 people from the upper Watut, Mumeng and Wapar local level government areas.
He said they had the constitutional rights to exercise and not people like Mauri dictating them.