Sir mekere morauta png images

A year later, he took up a job as economist in the Office of Economic advisor. When Papua New Guinea became self-governing inthe government of Chief Minister Michael Somare sought out its best and brightest to help run the young democracy. At 27, Mekere Morauta was thrust into a position of power and responsibility with his appointment as Secretary for Finance — a post he held for nine years.

Important influencer He was always an important influencer in the banking and financial sector of Papua New Guinea. He held the position for another 9 years until his upward transition to a new job as the Governor of the Bank of Papua New Guinea. It was during this short stint as the central bank Governor that he shot to prominence as an outspoken enemy of the corruption that was infecting PNG government institutions.

The international attention on government institutions and the corruption highlighted by key figures in Papua New Guinea, including Sir Mekere, caused many Papua New Guineans to demand a change in leadership and management. It was months before the elections and when Sir Julius was voted out of office, a new group of political leaders, including Sir Mekere Morouta were voted in.

The decade long closure of the Bougainville mine, a severe drought and high unemployment and government institutions in desperate need for reform… this was the scenario in when Sir Mekere took over from Bill Skate as prime minister. Some of Morauta's reforms were unpopular or caused serious pushback, such as the planned retrenchment of PNG's military and the privatisation of State Owned Enterprises as recommended by the likes of the World Bank and the IMF.

But fervent protests against the privatisation drive reached a tragic crescendo in when three students were shot dead by police at a mobilisation in Port Moresby. Morauta, who had lost his own son shortly after coming to powerwas able to connect with the parents and show great compassion on a level that said much about him as a human. Sir Mekere Morauta came out of retirement to stand successfully for the Moresby Northwest seat in parliament in Photo: Loop PNG.

Morauta lost control of government to Michael Somare following the election, but the economic reforms he introduced laid the foundation for economic growth that was enjoyed by the latter's government through the s. As well, his constitutional reforms stabilised PNG's notoriously fluid national political system, enabling the Somare government to hold power for an unprecedented nine-year run, followed by seven and a half years under Peter O'Neill.

It was to his frustration that some of the reforms Morauta had suggested when leading government, such as creation of a Sovereign Wealth Fund to responsibly manage revenue from resource extraction projects in PNG, have still not materialised.

Sir mekere morauta png images

After bowing out of parliament inMorauta remained a vocal advocate of fiscal prudence and transparency in governance, repeatedly warning about the systemic and systematic corruption holding PNG back. He emerged as a trenchant critic of O'Neill, against whom he squared off in a protracted legal clash over the assets of the PNG Sustainable Development Program, of which Morauta was the chairman.

Presently, the last two political regimes under the current government have consistently demonstrated an inability to initiate much-needed political reforms from where this great reformist PM left off. Papua New Guineans are only hoping and praying that our country gets another reformist leader like Sir Mekere Morauta after the national elections to make the required political reforms PNG so desperately needs in future.

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