Prime Minister and Member for Tari-Pori Hon. James Marape has congratulated newly elected and returning councillors in the Tari-Pori District, urging them to focus on grassroots leadership, peace-building, and basic service planning as they begin their new term in office.
Addressing councillors and Local-Level Government (LLG) leaders during the first District Development Authority (DDA) meeting for the term last Friday, Prime Minister Marape thanked councillors for their strong turnout and commitment to leadership.
“It was a privilege for me to meet all my councillors today and to formally present council badges to each of them,” Prime Minister Marape said. “I congratulate you all and commend you for showing up for our first meeting of the term.”
The Prime Minister announced that councillors will be allowed to use the Hulukumaya Assembly Hall for council and LLG meetings, emphasising the importance of creating functional spaces for leadership and planning at the local level.
He urged councillors to return to the fundamentals of ward leadership by clearly understanding their ward boundaries, populations, and development needs.
“I want councillors to get back to basics,” Prime Minister Marape said. “You must take stock of all the people in your respective wards and establish strong ward committees that promote peace, SME development, education programmes, and proper population counts.”
The Prime Minister also directed councillors to work closely with their respective LLG administrations to develop and submit ward-level planning documents, including priority plans for basic services such as water supply.
“Start at the ward level,” he said. “Submit your ward plans through your LLGs and ensure the foundations of service delivery are in place.”
Prime Minister Marape acknowledged the support of government agencies and thanked energy sector officials present at the meeting for their engagement with district leadership.
He concluded by congratulating all councillors once again and confirmed that he looks forward to meeting them again during the next DDA meeting scheduled for May.
“Well done and congratulations to all councillors,” Prime Minister Marape said. “I look forward to seeing all of you again as we continue working together for the people of Tari-Pori.”