Rule of Law a Serious Concern: Former Justice Minister of Papua New Guinea

The country has to seriously rethink how it goes about government business, says Papua New Guinea MP, Davis Steven who resigned as justice minister. He revealed deep concerns with the current state of governance.

Steven said critical steps were required to reposition the nation's future and systems of governance, more than ever, needs to be strengthened. He reiterated that the rule of law is at stake with systems and process that are weak, easily undermined and compromised by those in leadership. The former minister said the law and justice sector needed to be taken seriously or the country would regret its ignorance.

"Reforming all sectors of government require political will and a central government system that prioritizes the rule of law. For me, the issue is consensus at the top level, for us to look beyond the usual business where we are opening roads, bridges, but to really sit down and think about the issues that we have before us and how we can address them."

Steven also expressed concerns about lingering issues of how the government was managing the interests of the country's resource owners in the development process.