P-Ng Administrator

Still No Announcement

T is generally understood by ? usually well-informed people that r r n J Cleland Assistant Ad -7 \ leJ^ na ’ ssisia “ l umstrator of Papua-New Gumea. id Acting Administrator since olonel Murray retired on June 30, is been accepted by the Australian overnment for appointment to the nior position An announcement as expected after the Prime Minister turned from London and before .turned trom London, ana oerorc tr. Cleland returned to Port [oresby late in December.

But both Mr Menzies and Mr.

Ipianrt flr p hark in harness and ud the momeVit ofVTwritine Ifcere the moment of this writing, thete no announcement. Six months of Acting seems an unconscionable ne; but stranger things are on cord The New Zealand Socialist overnment kept Alfred Turnbull trtino” in the Arlrninktratnrshin of

S Loa mr vears

estern bamoa tor about six years, :fore it finally gave him the job, id a knighthood.

Meanwhile, Mr. Cleland has settled .ietly and effectively into the P-NG dmimstratorship, there is ’ i-operative spirit evident throughout e services; and the ordered develop ent of the big Territories is begin ng to really take shape. Mr. eland already has found that P-NG a land of tireless critics, and al a * uo, Uuc *~~aa*„ „ ’ „ ady ne has trodden upon a tew es. But lerntonans always respect man who has strength of purpose

and knows his own mind; and ‘ the new man” appears to have these qualities. 1953 is likely to be an im portant and interesting year in Papua- New Guinea.

Political Possibilities

The forecast among certain

politically-conscious gossips in Aus

tralia at the moment is that the late Administrator of Papua-New Guinea, Colonel J. K. Murray, will be invited to contest a safe Labour seat in the next general election and that, if he and Labour generally are success ful—and the defeat of the Menzies- Fadden Government is at present anticipated—Colonel Murray will be the next Minister for Territories.

Some say that a Queensland seat is already ear-marked for the former

Queensland Professor.

No one expects that Mr. E. J Ward will again be Minister for Territories. All sorts of jobs are forecast for him. One bright Brisbane writer says that if Colonel Murray becomes Minister, he may invite Mr.

Ward to become Administrator!