Papua New Guinea leader under fire over loan: reports

Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has been referred to the public prosecutor for alleged misconduct over his government's purchase of shares in an oil and gas company, reports said Wednesday. O'Neill criticised the Ombudsman Commission's move as disappointing, adding that he had not been given adequate time to respond to the complaint, The Post-Courier newspaper reported. ‘This is a case of 'sour grapes' by former ministers who have been pushing this issue with the ombudsman,’ O'Neill said in a statement quoted in the newspaper. ‘I will see to it that these claims are fully tested through the court system and if there has been undue interference in this process it will be exposed.’ Polye had reportedly refused to sign off on the Aus$1.2 billion (US$1.1 billion) loan to buy back some of the shares the government had offloaded in March. O'Neill denied the allegations, saying the government had fully disclosed the process to acquire the shares which he said had already risen in value, according to AFP.