Papua New Guinea’s O’Neill Says Corruption Claims ‘Fabricated’

(Bloomberg) -- Papua New Guinea’s former leader Peter O’Neill says that allegations of corruption leveled against him by police are “false and fabricated.”

Acting Commissioner of Police David Manning issued a statement on Facebook on Tuesday saying a warrant for O’Neill’s arrest had been issued for official corruption. He declined to give details due to the “sensitivity of the investigations”

O’Neill said in his own Facebook statement that the allegations “relate to renovations to the Yangaum Health Center in Madang” province.

“The fact that the Acting Commissioner would choose to make this announcement on social media, and not through official representation to my office, is telling that this is a political move,” O’Neill said. He said he had not been informed or presented with a warrant of arrest.

O’Neill resigned as prime minister in May after facing a potential no-confidence motion due to dissatisfaction over a recently signed natural-gas agreement with France’s Total SA, which sparked a wave of ministerial resignations. He was replaced by James Marape, who pledged to get better deals from foreign firms involved in the country’s oil, minerals, forestry and fishing industries.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Scott in Canberra at jscott14@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Ruth Pollard at rpollard2@bloomberg.net, Edward Johnson

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