Fourteen former Ministers of the ousted Sogavare-led government have been accused of attempting to undermine governmental programmes by refusing to return government vehicles.
Deputy Prime Minister, Fred Fono, said the duration for which the former MPs have retained the vehicles have far exceeded reasonability.He reiterated calls on all fourteen former Ministers to surrender the wanted government assets without any further delays.
Mr. Fono said there should be displayed courtesy towards Ministers within the present government, and the former Ministers should respect their need for accessible transportation.
With the struggle on the legal aspect over the vehicles, Deputy Prime Minister Fono described it as just another tactic of those under the Sogavare leadership to buy more time.
He branded the withholding of the vehicles as illegal and criticized their refusal to comply with a request from the national government.
Mr. Fono said that they should be wary of their positions as national leaders and how their character integrity may be perceived through their actions.
In addition to this, Mr. Fono also raised the fact that six former Ministers are still residing in government-owned houses which they should have vacated three weeks ago.
It is due to this, stated Mr. Fono, that new Ministers entitled to the said houses had no alternative but to seek accommodation in local hotels.
According to Mr. Fono, the only MPs rightfully privileged to have access to government vehicles and housing are ones under the Parliamentary Entitlement Registration.