PNG's Namah says O'Neill must step down

Transcript

A Papua New Guinea opposition MP, says the prime minister is prepared to vandalise the constitution to build his personal wealth while the country is brought to its knees.

Belden Namah's comments come as Peter O'Neill ignores calls to shut the Manus Island asylum camp after a Supreme Court challenge, brought by Mr Namah, declared the arrangements for the Australian run operation were illegal.

He told Don Wiseman that Mr O'Neill must step down to allow a police investigation into his possible involvement in an alleged fraud involving a Port Moresby law firm.

BELDEN NAMAH: If Peter O'Neill wants to say that he is innocent, he should  be going down to the police get himself interviewed and he can go and defend himself in the proper court of law. But right now what he is doing is avoiding being arrested by police, avoiding being interviewed by fraud squad. He is shutting down the fraud squad office which is uncalled for, for the prime minister of this country to do such actions.

DON WISEMAN: Do you think he should step aside right now at this point and then go through this process?

BN: He should step aside, a right thinking prime minister should do the right thing, that is step aside and let investigations to go ahead.

DW: Now one of your key concerns besides the state of the economy is what has happened on Manus Island and it was you that brought the supreme court challenge and you were successful with that. What is it that you actually want the prime minister to do because he has said that he will shut it down hasn't he?

BN: Well what the prime minister fell short of doing instead of saying that he will shut it down, is to let the country know what is his schedule. We need to know the time frame. The time frame as to when it is going to happen, how it is going to happen and the nation needs to know.

DW: What sort of a time frame are you looking at?

BN: I am looking at it happening within the next three months. They should be able to do that. When they occupied Manus Island it happened so fast.

DW: Why three months though, why can't it happen tomorrow?

BN: No, basically I am giving them a time-frame of three months but a time-frame it should shut down already as soon as the court decision was handed down. Immediate, it is of immediate effect. But three months as in you know de-mobilisation and all these things must happen, I would like to allow that to happen. In terms of shutting it down it should have happened on the day the supreme court handed down its decision.

DW: What do you think has got to happen with the asylum seekers and the refugees because it doesn't look as though PNG is in a position to take them and I don't they want to be in PNG?

BN: Primarily the issue of asylum seekers is Australia's problem it is Australia's issue and Australia should have processed them in Australia and then deal with it. But instead they decided to choose a third country that happened to be Papua New Guinea which I have successfully contested and successfully one the case. So it is up to Australia now to sort this problem out and they cannot say it is no longer our problem that is not right that is not true.

DW: Of course there are a series of issues that you have attacked the government on, you say the opposition has done all it can to defend the constitution but now the people have got to take the country back what are you saying are you suggesting a revolution here?

BN: I am not suggesting a revolution I am suggesting that if the prime ministers continues to suppress and intimidate the police force especially the fraud and anti-corruption, what solution do we have? The students are already boycotting classes what solution is there? The right thing for a right thinking prime minister to do in protecting the integrity of the office of the prime minister of the independent state of Papua New Guinea is to step aside and allow the police process to take place.