Polye pins economic growth to Somare led govt policies

By MATTHEW VARI

Sunday, August 16, 2015 (Sunday Chronicle, PNG)

FORMER Deputy Prime Minister to the Somare led government (2002-2011) and now Opposition Leader, Don Polye, has pinned the country’s strong economic growth to the policies and strategies put in place by the then Somare-Polye led government.

With close to a decade of growth since 2007, Mr Polye said that the former regime had a huge role to play with the current success in the local economy.

“All of you were here in 2002, 2003, to 2010, 2011, and I want to say that what you see today with this remarkable GDP growth that you have seen over the years and now through the LNG Project coming on to stream,” Polye said.

“Somare was the Prime minister I was the deputy and we drove the Export Driven Strategy which we put down and the Medium Term Development Strategy, Vision 2050, the Medium Term Debt Management Strategy, Medium Term Fiscal Strategy. Those programs that we put down that various governments have taken on and now the O’Neill government is driving them.”

“The O’Neill Government is yet to come up with its own real strategies and policies on how they can lead the country to the next stage. At the moment it hasn’t and country has lost confidence in him.”

“I am proud because what we see today are the results of the work that we put in place 5 to 7 years ago.”