The Porgera Mining Contract of ‘89’ was significantly altered, devoid of the aspirations of then Enga Regional MP, late Hon. Malipu Balakau. The final paper excluded clauses that had been vigorously pushed for by Hon. M Balakau during the forums with the State and Joint Venture Partners months earlier. Had this visionary leader’s radical and nationalistic agenda been captured in the final draft, the course of history, including the socio-economic landscapes, of both Enga Province and PNG, been without doubt positively different.
After his election victory in ‘87’ late Hon. M Balakau set out to do exactly what he had promised his voters during his campaign. He was determined to underpin his dream for Enga’s radical advancement at the back of EPG’s greater participation in developing the gold discovered at Porgera, and therefrom, launch his pitch to be the first PM from Enga Province.
His famed speech ‘to reverse the wind that is blowing’ fanned the hopes of a predominately illiterate but prideful and headstrong people. Though new comers to the outside world the Engan men’s ideals and beliefs of greatness were deeply entrenched in the dynamic and complex cultural setting that had been passed on untainted from a far but traceable past.
Like the rich gold veins that bore deep into Porgera’s mantle, the Engan men had a deep and immovable conviction of an unsaid duty to provide the objective moral values, following from their forefathers’ teachings, which would provide the basis for PNG advancement.
The vestige of that past generation was represented with that era’s unanimous election of Malipu Balakau to the province’s top office. Though Malipu Balakau’s political rhetoric may seem farfetched and incongruent to realities faced then, and construed by critics as an attempt to lure votes from a susceptible population.
Nonetheless, his allure for greatness struck a common cord amongst the masses. It stemmed from a highly intelligent mind whose vision for Enga’s advancement was based on practical wisdom and the viable option of EPG actually becoming a major partner in mining one of the world’s largest gold discoveries.
The notion of nationalization of natural resources debated today was actually pushed forward, and constructively at that, by Malipu Balakau when he announced to stunned stakeholders during the forum meetings “of EPG’s intentions through its business arm, ‘Enga Enterprise Ltd’, to be the major supplier of all the earthmovers and machines that would be required in the capital intensive operation”. His pitch resulted in diluting the ownership agenda of Placer Dome & MIM.
The announcement reeled the Joint Venture Partners and then Mining Minister, Hon. M Iangalio. Their assumption of the newly elected Regional MP was all wrong. As negotiation progressed they slowly became aware that this first term MP was a tough and shrewd man with moral virtues as straight as iron beams.
Unlike other MPs of similar background who had succumbed to the multinationals’ wills in other expeditions throughout the world. Who also included others whose initial resistance and zeal quickly eroded after a briefcase was pushed their way under the table.
This unassuming leader was nothing like the others they’d had dealt with elsewhere. This little known first-timer, from one of the least developed places on earth, couldn’t be folded nor bought however the price.
Instead, Hon. M Balakau cut-short the Joint Venture Partners’ proposals with deadly efficiency and got his pitch without much fuzz through; which also included amongst others, exacted the Joint Ventures Partners in agreeing to build a tailings dam instead of their proposal to neutralize the tailings before dumping it into the Porgera river.
However, Hon. M Balakau’s main pitch was to get supply nearly a half of the total machineries that would be required for the mine. Consequently, slicing more than a third of the entire cake which would account for a minimum of US $33-40 billion or K99- 120 billion. These estimation includes what had been dug out without the notice of the National Government the last 30 years.
As talks progressed the developers realized that they had terribly underestimated this inconspicuous novice and were now paying dearly for their ignorance. It finally dawned on them that M Balakau was one of those rare breeds of men, the kinds whose legends were made of.
The bargaining chips the negotiation team had brought to the table had become ineffectual, futile in their purpose to lure Malipu Balakau and deter him from the path he had already taken. Any last minute attempts to resuscitate their greedy agendas via the Mining Minster by invoking the over-riding passage of ‘national interest of encouraging & protecting investors’ confidence’ lost its fervor to the resonating tempo of economic freedom, and the delight of victory over a once indomitable foe.
It was at this juncture in PNG’s history that the first flicker of hope broke through a crevice in the dark forbidding tunnel of economic despair and mental slavery. For the very first time true freedom was palpable and at last within reach.
Alas, Friday 12 May, 1989, the Mining Development Contract containing the clauses that Malipu Balakau had engineered from start to end was signed between the Independent State of PNG, represented by Mining Minister, Hon. Masket Iangalio, the Joint Venture Partners, and himself, whose signature also represented those of the illiterate landowners.
The possum was in all accounts in his bag, he had won, it was a win for the province and people, and by default the rest of PNG. What Malipu Balakau had boldly predicted at Pindak during the 1982 National Elections was at last brewing, the thunderstorm was in the horizon, what was a dream was now crystalizing.
Apart from those privileged few who were present during the negotiations and signing of the mining contract the only other person with the Regional MP during these sessions was another big thinker and who like Balakau was also far ahead of his time.
His name was Seth Timano, an earlier graduate engineer of Unitech, and successful businessman who had supported Malipu Balakau as far back as the ‘82’ election. From the same Yanairine tribe they basically grew up together, watched each other become men in their own rights and shared the same dream that would inevitable lead them both to the same destination. Destiny had irrevocably weaved their lives together, it was a bond tied together for eternity.
During those days Seth served as Malipu Balakau’s counselor. They had already agreed amongst themselves that Seth would manage the provincial government’s proposed multimillion dollars Enga Enterprise. So far, all their plans had been successful; getting to university and attaining their bachelors, their election victory after a second attempt, their successful pitch of EPG becoming a major partner in the Porgera Gold Mine. Everything they touched seemed to have the King Midas effect.
But unknown to them a cruel twist of events would render their plans meaningless. What loomed ahead would delete forever their very life stories from the annuls of history and in its place, a wisp of folklore, names spoken between haze of lazy smokes swirling inside hamlets throughout the land instead of written manuscripts befitting of the legends they truly were.
On the other side of the globe, news of the failed bid wasn’t received favorably by the owners of these multinational companies; in fact it was an uproar mixed with profanity and seething anger. Immediately after hearing that the Joint Venture Partners bid had failed another smaller but sinister meeting ensued.
On the surface the men who presided this meeting seemed quite ordinary, well-groomed and well-mannered gentlemen from the high streets but upon closer scrutiny these were some of the world’s most ruthless and dangerous individuals. As a matter of fact, these men were on the same par as drug lords and mafia bosses. Yet they operated from behind polished boardrooms some hundred feets above the New York skyline and had a way of evading the law and legitimizing their ill-gotten gains.
Their exploits, however, had left millions of people in destitute and abject poverty, a trail of irreversible environmental destructions, crumpled governments and economies are a few notable mention of their handiwork. As fate would have it, Malipu Balakau’s checkmate would be cheated, overturned by a counter move, an unexpected hand had been raised on the other side of the globe.
Back in PNG, Friday night, 30 June, 1989, exactly 7 weeks after the purported signing of the mining contract, an assassin’s bullet shattered the greatest dream ever envisioned by a PNGean. In one act of savagery the dream that had just taken flight was struck down, the flicker of light was snuffed out forever, effectively pushing back the province, country and its people to the soiling tunnel of despair and repressive poverty.
The projectile had been spot on, an exact kill, right on the forehead. Years later, reflecting back on the crime scene experts have concluded the kill could only have been executed by a professional; cold, swift and precise to a decimal, nothing left to chance.
To date police haven’t been able to find the murderer, nor have suspects been identified, nor, has anyone come out claiming to have knowledge of the murder. It may not have been local that’s why but the media reported the murder as a wanton killing by thugs. Oblivious to the facts and circumstances that Malipu Balakau murder had been premeditated for reasons warranting such.
At the wake of the assassination saw people pointing fingers at each other, mass stampede, hundreds of thousands of kinas worth of damages to public properties, violence and murder. All these craziness done without actually asking themselves why, what, how; the kind of questions our forbearers would have asked to investigate such a murder of a prominent person, not only to find a murderer but more importantly to establish the cause.
After satisfying their misplaced fury and blood thirst, like the gullible fools
they were, instead chose to accept the story put forth in the dailies. Rather
than carrying out a separate investigation into their leader’s murder, by their
omission to do anything constructive, they conceded that the leader’s demise
was a random act of murder by lowlife scums.
Had the people then known the truth would anything been different? Now that’s a
question, ain’t it not?
In another twist Seth Timano was murdered months later also under suspicious circumstances. The only person who would’ve shed any light on the purported Porgera Mining Contract of 1989 was also silenced.
Like any competent criminal organization would do, the crooks tied all the loose ends, no potential leaks, no potential witness, any evidences leading back to them soured, the cleaner had done his part.
Bloody brilliant it may seem but even cold cases and John Doe have a way of
reaching back. Some cold cases do have a way clawing its way back from the
past, and that is what as happened here.
Whilst many today are scratching the surface on the issues surrounding the
Porgera gold a closer inspection into the purported Porgera Gold Mining Contract
of 12 May, 1989, reveals one glaring anomalies. It’s as if the dead man is
trying to say something.
After a shake of the head the revelation is staggering, it was there right in front of our eyes yet no one saw it. For 30 years the murders of Malipu Balakau and Seth Timano have been shrouded in mystery but after re-visiting the mining contract it can be safe to say the Joint Venture Partners (Placer Dome & MIM) murdered both men.
And here it is, the punch line, if the Porgera Mining Agreement was purported to have been ‘signed on Friday, 12 of May, 1989,” how come Hon. Malipu Balakau’s signature is not found on it? He was well and truly alive on that exact date, the 12 of May, 1989, when the State & Developers had signed it. Instead we have a purported mining contract signed on that same date but without the signature of the province’s Regional MP, whose participation is under the Mining Act is as mandatory a requirement for any such development?
He was assassinated 30 June, exactly seven weeks later, after the purported signing of the said contract.
The facts, however, show that Malipu Balakau had indeed signed an original and
legally binding Porgera Mining Agreement on the 12 of May, 1989 of which Masket
Iangalio and Kurubu Ipara can confirm because they were both present during the
signing, and are still alive, I presume.
The latter as DA of Porgera and who drafted the ‘Ipara Studies’, genealogical
studies paving the way for the ‘89’ negotiations.
After the assassination of Malipu Balakau the original agreement was clandestinely removed and replaced with the one which expired August last year, 2019.
Of course the replaced version was intended to articulate the interests of the Joint Venture Partners, and deliberately intended to omit any of the consensus agreed earlier by the State, Joint Venture Partners and Hon. M Balakau.
This facade of a contract was accepted unopposed by the naive State Minister who waivered the rights of EPG, landowners and with his signature effectively handed the key to Alibaba’s cave. You may say otherwise but its his signature which is on the said contract.
The million question is ‘Was there another original Porgera Mining Contract where Malipu Balakau had signed?
And so, the story still continues, Enga and PNG have made a full circle, arriving again where it all begun 30 years ago, minus $100 billion worth of gold that has already left PNG’s shores.
The challenges and temptations are still the same, but this time it is not just a fight to save the remaining gold deposits but more importantly a fight that will represent the emancipation of the people from mental slavery and allow PNGeans to believe in themselves and have a greater say on our natural resources, and in a way fulfill what is our destiny.
I can only tell you bits and pieces of the past but I am trying to prepare those who are standing on the frontline of the coming trial.
We stand upon the edge of a prepricise, a fall from which we will not return. Each of us must find courage when we are most afraid to do what we must, that is our duty.
There is an old Chinese proverb that I’ve always liked, ‘the heart never speaks but you must listen to it to know’.
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