The Papua New Guinea Teachers’ Association’s (PNGTA) triennial congress currently underway in Lae, Morobe, is legal and an important part of the process of electing new executives, says an official.
Carl Kuira, who has been providing legal assistance to the current executives led by president Aita Sangkepe, said as per the association’s constitution, an election had to be held every three years.
He said before an election, a congress is called where the national management committee, branch and provincial executives, and various representatives, including observers, convene to reflect on the last three years of office.
The congress is basically like a parliament sitting for teachers were issues and performances are scrutinized and assessed, and decisions are made to accept new concepts or doing away with the old.
Carl Kuira
The 16th triennial congress, however, has been met with opposition by another faction claiming to be legitimate executives.
Kuira dismissed the claims, saying the confusion lay with the last executives voted out in the July 2019 – April 2020 election.