Central Province women listen to Governor Robert Agarobe

 It is now time for the people of Central Province to use their democratic right to make a choice on who should be their Governor.

So many candidates are on the campaign trail.

Robert Agarobe meets people at Yule Island, Kairuku District

As for me, my campaign has taken place in the last five years and today, my team and I are having meet and greets with people to explain to them about what we have done so far.

“They will not be doing a campaign but awareness,” Hon Robert Agarobe told over one hundred Central women who gathered to see video news clip reports about few of his achievements in passing legislations.

“It’s about making you aware of a lot of things you are not aware off.”

He told the women if they thought they knew politics they would by lying just like himself.

He admitted he picked up after two years in Parliament and made bold decisions to ensure Central Province benefits.

“Being an aircraft engineer I am a fast learner,” he said this assisted him to quickly see how politics worked and he became part of the government that overthrew PNC and for the first time Central Province is recognized.

“I fought a battle behind the scenes,” Agarobe said.

Robert Agarobe MP

 The women gathered to watch some of his achievements in making legislative changes that will essentially support development progress for the province in the longer term.

These are like the nuts and bolts his team and has put together and soon other parts will make it complete and Central will prosper.

Agarobe said he was impressed by the reaction from these women who saw the TV news clips and cheered and gave an applause.

I invite my people of Central to see our achievements without a biased view.

An important legislation that we have amended and passed is the NCDC 2001 Amendment Bill.

We will now have access to 10 percent of GST generated in Port Moresby paid directly to us by the Internal Revenue Commission amounting to K3.2 million every month.

What does that mean, we will have more revenue to increase the size of our budget and respond to our sector development needs.

Aside from that and empowered by the Act, I as your Governor will sit on the NCDC board.

This was never realized before.

The women were also made aware that the Lands Department has also given the land title for the land at Konedobu to the Central Provincial Government.

Important to note, I have decided that our headquarters will be built on the Konedobu land with few other important infrastructure like lecture theatres for teaching, learning and preserving our history and heritage.

You may wonder why I changed my mind not to build at Bautama.

Basically this is strategic.

Encroachers are land grabbing our land and denying us the rights to legitimate benefits on our Central land that Port Moresby is built on, and if we moved to Bautama, it means we have been defeated and kicked out of our Central land.

We must build on our land in Port Moresby and make a statement that Port Moresby is still ours.

“I talk a lot about our land and history and I sound like a broken CD,” Agarobe said.

The national government has pledged to support infrastructure development at Konedobu.

The women were also made aware that another important development progress the Pangu led government has supported Central is the establishment of the Provincial Health Authority and the subsequent launch of a provincial hospital to be built at Bautama.

It will be to the tune of K700 million and expected to be completed in 2025.

The development will be the hospital and a commercial hub.

That is a huge milestone again supported by Prime Minister James Marape’s government and I had to be vocal to have the hospital built at Bautama rather than at Gerehu in NCD.

People with vested interests have wanted it to be constructed at Gerehu.

Once that 330-beds hospital with specialist health care services are in operation our people will be so relieved.

 We will ensure the services are sustained and there is high quality service delivered.

They do not need to queue at the Port Moresby General Hospital.

Agarobe told the women, being an aircraft engineer he was about sustaining projects and infrastructure.

“It’s about building and sustaining it and for us to do that we need money,” he said.

The latest legislative changes aim to grow the economy so there enough money to respond to basic needs and build enabling infrastructure.