The National Government plans for Pacific Games Venues and Athletes Training

Team Cook Islands at the Games Village. The facility will be given to the University of Papua New Guinea

By FIDELIS SUKINA

The Pacific games is a sure success for Papua New Guinea topping the medal tally with a whopping 88 Gold 69 Silver and 60 Bronze, coming in second was defending champions New Caledonia, and Tahiti in third place.

All success has been credited to the Athletes and of course the High performance training center and the High Performance coaches.

The Go for gold program by the National Government produced results with a backing of K4 million going to good use to train athletes overseas and at the High Performance center here in the Nation’s capital.

Sports Minister Justin Tkatchenko has praised the High Performance center and said the government will continue with the program to achieve more results in the future.

“Thanks to the Prime Minister Peter O’Neill we have approval and we will continue with the High Performance training and the High Performance Institute, that’s very important and that will continue because that has given us the 88 gold medals, it has allowed us to have the best coaches from the best situations to ensure we give our athletes the best performance training possible.”  Tkatchenko said

Team PNG athletes were also happy with the games and the decision by government to give K2, 500 each to athletes who didn’t win any medals.

This is apart from the players who took gold medals who will be getting K20,000 these include members of teams sports who will get the same amount each, for silver medalists they will get K10, 000 while Bronze medalists will get K5, 000.

During the closing ceremony of the 15th Pacific Games

It’s an incentive which was made possible by the government through secured K7 million funding which will ensure all athletes of team PNG are happy and come out winners in their own right.

As for the sporting venues, they will all come under the Papua New Guinea Sports Foundation

 Minister for sports and National Events Justin Tkatchenko during a press conference at Parliament House said every facility that was built except the games village will come under the management of the Sports Foundation under a Trust.

 “The National Sports Trust Limited is headed by the deputy chairman of the PNG sports Foundation Godfrey Seeto and his Deputy Stan Joyce very prominent Papua New Guineans that have done so much for our country especially in administration and management and also construction, so they have a vast experience in that regard they will be heading the new trust which comes under the PNG sports foundation under chairman Graham Osborne” Tkatchenko said

He said things went out of hand after the 1991 pacific games and it was a lesson to be learnt.

“ 1991after the pacific games everything collapsed  fell apart, because  of management and previous governments non funding for the facilities this will not happen under my watch and this will not happen under your governments watch, we will ensure that the facilities will be funded and maintained for the long term” Tkatchenko added

Venues like the new Aquatic  center and others constructed for the games
will come under the PNG Sports foundation under the National Sports Trust Limited

 He said that venue managers in Papua New Guinea will be helped by experts from Australia to help guide them and enhance their capacity.

“The Australian Government will only provide one or two experts individual experts to oversee manage and run the venues for a period of two to  three years during that time they will train and advise the managers of those infrastructure venues that we have built they will be under the venues experts from Australia and will work side by side to ensure everything is covered and the knowledge they lacks is improved they get educated in that regard this will ensure they are educated to the highest level so they can take on those facilities without fear or favor we are not taking away this roles from Papua New Guineas but enhancing what they already have” Tkatchenko said

As for the Games village it will be the property of the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) but will be out sourced to other professionals to help manage it.

 Justin Tkatchenko said UPNG lacked the capacity to look after such a facility

“Let’s not kid ourselves on how we are going to run and operate it, The university of Papua New Guinea has not got the capacity to look after a 1500 room basically a hotel or a kitchen that can cater for a thousand people an hour , the government cannot also look after such a facility, we need the best people and companies, hoteliers get them involved and get them to help us run this facility, so its maintained and looked after in the long term, it needs to be outsourced to professionals to ensure it is run properly for the students as well as for future sporting and major events in our country” Tkatchenko said

 Linda Pulsan training at the High Performance center a program
which the Government will continue with

But back to the local competitions in Port Moresby well after the sports starved capital of Port Moresby had a fill from the pacific games most competitions in the city for sporting codes came to a standstill with sports like Rugby Union having nowhere to play out the 2015 season till this date.  

Well the minister said it will be under sub lease basis that sporting codes can use the facilities after the government acquired all the land titles of all sporting venues and now have put them all under one title under the PNG Sports foundation.

 “We compulsory acquired all the sporting facilities and recreational facilities in Port Moresby for that it’s all under one title which comes under the PNG Sports Foundation Sporting codes will now come to the Sports Foundation the CEO and chairman and they will than put up their proposal to look after and use that facility, that we have built for the pacific games” Tkatchenko said

“For example Rugby Union will come back to the sports foundation and ask the sports foundation to take over the facility, there will be terms and conditions put in place for them to use the land we will sub lease it back to them” Tkatchenko said

But for these venues to be used proper maintenance must be done and defects fixed before the Sports Foundation can take over the facilities, that has been the plan all along and government has put in a 10% withholding fee for the contractors to fix up the venues before they can be paid their final installment.

Minister for sports and National Events Justin Tkatchenko said all contractors contracted with the Pacific Games venues are subjected to a withholding fee before they hand over the venues to the Sports Foundation

Team PNG womens 4x400 meter relay team before their Gold medal performance

“All contracts for all infrastructure for all companies are subjected to a 10% withholding fee to ensure work is completed, until all work and defects of the construction is complete the 10%  will not be paid to the contractor, this is so all our facilities are completed over the next two to three months.” Tkatchenko said

He added that minor works were being done on some venues and defect lists were written for contractors to see and fix the problems

“There are minor works that need to be done at the Aquatic Center and Bisini Parade, all the defect lists have been given to the contractors by professional independent consultants and architects, as well there is a defect list by PNG Sports Foundation these lists will go around with the contractors and see all different venues defects are fixed before venues can be handed back to the Sports Foundation” Tkatchenko said

He also added that contrators have an obligation to maintain facilities for free in the next 12 months

“All contractors for this venues will maintain these facilities free of charge on their own cost for 12 months, this is the first of its kind, we want the facilities to come back to us with no maintenance issues so the venues and the Trust can run them perfectly from day one, all payments will be done after all defects are taken care of, we must hold the contractor accountable for their workmanship” Tkatchenko said

Papua New Guinea is now ready for future sporting events; with the ball rolling it’s only a kick away from reaching Papua New Guineas goal of being the top sporting nation in the Pacific.