Kevin D. Carignan 
Transparency International PNG has been informed by the Jiwaka Provincial Electoral Office that the province will begin a 10-day roll updating exercise for all 214 wards from February 16, 2022 until the end of the month.
TIPNG Deputy Director of Policy and Partnerships, Yuambari Haihuie, who led the outreach team in Jiwaka, said the reality is that administrative delays in preparing for the elections have impacted the rights of Papua New Guineans. New Guinea and that the situation will only get worse if partners do not share information and collaborate. in the run up to the elections.
“Jiwaka and many other provinces are only beginning to update voter lists, and without clear coordination and collaboration, these vital democratic processes will sow distrust in communities and create pathways for the corrupt to abuse electoral processes.
“TIPNG calls on all Provincial Election Steering Committees (PESC) to include well-established partners from provincial civil society, media and faith-based organizations to ensure that information is shared with communities and that electoral planning includes the issues from the perspective of citizens.
“This is the democracy of our Papua New Guinea and we Papua New Guineans must be part of it to ensure that we hold a free, fair and safe 2022 national general election,” Haihuie added.
TIPNG held a one-day Election Awareness Workshop on Wednesday, February 16, 2022, in Banz, Jiwaka, where Jiwaka PESC members presented plans and preparations for the elections to civil society organizations which included; Callan Services, Meri Kirap Sapotim, PNG Tribal Foundation, Caritas PNG, Kosem Coffee and Voice for Change.
The civic outreach was organized as part of TIPNG’s Building Elections Integrity through Partnership (BEIP) project.
