Over Housing

P-Ng Anger

Shortage

Papua-New Guinea Treasurer Mr. A. P. J. Newman was in for a torrid two hours when on the night of January 8 he walked into St. John’s Hall, Boroko, Port Moresby, to face 100 of

the Territory’s angriest public

servants.

HE had been invited there to answer questions on the Admin istration’s plans for reducing the ever growing list of its employees who are without permanent houses.

The meeting ended with allegations of “blatant dishonesty” and sugges tions that the Minister for Territories be sued.

The Public Service Association had been asked to convene the meeting by the 76 dissatisfied home-seekers on the official housing lists. And to the last man the entire housing list turned up!

Public Service Association pre sident Mr. Peter Lalor opened pro ceedings by saying the 76 on the housing list had 168 dependents and that if claims made by Department of Territories in its advertisements for staff had been fulfilled, there would be no one on the housing list with seniority dating to before mid -1962.

But in fact, said Mr. Lalor, there were 22 on the list who were em ployed prior to that date and who were still waiting for houses.

"Key" People

Yet numbers of other public servants were brought to the Terri tory with housing immediately guaranteed. If there were no such thing as “guaranteed accommodation’ the position would be much better, he said.

Mr. Newman replied that there were two limiting factors—funds and building potential.

And he argued strongly that the private building contractors did not have the potential to undertake as much housing work as was required.

Mr. Lalor argued back just as strongly that this was not so.

PSA had been in touch with Chambers of Commerce throughout the Territory and each had ridiculed the suggestion the building pro

gramme in each of their areas could not be handled by local builders.

A number of speakers asked Mr.

Newman who declared “key” per sonnel, and if the policy of guarantee ing accommodation to certain posi tions to aid recruitment from Aus tralia would be continued.

Only the Administrator made the decision about “key” personnel, Mr.

Newman answered.

Disgruntled

The guaranteed housing policy had been created to bring to the Terri tory as soon as possible the engineers and draftsmen urgently needed by the two constructing authorities so they could expand their operation sufficiently to meet the increased de mands being made on them.

He could not say whether this policy would continue.

“I just do not know,” the Treasurer said. But he hinted he may oppose its continuance.

Twenty-one of the disgruntled home-seekers put their views to Mr.

Newman and in every case said they felt they had been duped into coming to the Territory by Department of Territories advertisements and re cruitment officers who were “either blatantly dishonest or plain ignorant.”

Most speakers said recruitment officers told them to disregard the advertisements which said housing would be available after 18 months in the Territory.

One man, the father of five, said a recruitment officer told him, “You’ll get a house well before that—any way, leave houses are easy to find.”

Mr. Newman said he would “speak most forcibly to the highest authority in efforts to have the position cor rectly represented.”

Out of the meeting came three things: • A resolution calling on the PSA executive to investigate the pos sibility of suing the Minister for Territories for false representation of the conditions of service in the Terri tory, • An assurance from the Treasurer that 100 new housing units would be available in Port Moresby by the end of June. • A PSA executive meeting with Territories Minister Barnes on Fri day, January 10. However, this meeting did not take the matter any further.

The shortage of Administration houses in Port Moresby has had a

tremendous effect on housing avail ability generally. Another factor in the present scarcity of houses to rent or buy is the presence of the 100man US Air Force geodetic survey team based there.

In many cases the Americans are paying <£4o a week for a house.

Many houses which a year ago were offered for sale at relatively low prices were withdrawn from the market when the Americans arrived and rented at high prices.

Administration officers say fewer leave houses are now being offered to homeless fellow officers. They say this is because of stories of damaged homes and belongings more and

more officers are telling on their re turn from leave.

Few suggestions for easing the position were offered at the PSA meeting and other than the 100 new houses Mr. Newman promised there seems no solution to the problem for a long time.

People with many years’ experi ence of the infamous housing list say that for every ten new homes offered only three names are struck from the housing list.

The other homes go mostly to approved transfers.

Similar situations exist in Madang (where PSA officials say the situa tion is desperate), Lae and Rabaul.