Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea

Prime Minister of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea
Prime Minister of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea
Praim Minista bilong Papua Niugini (Tok Pisin)
	Emblem of Papua New Guinea
	Flag of Papua New Guinea
	Incumbent; James Marape; since 30 May 2019
Style	The Honourable
Status	Head of government
Abbreviation	PM
Member of	Parliament; Cabinet;
Seat	Port Moresby
Nominator	National Parliament
Appointer	Governor-General
Term length	No fixed term length
Precursor	Chief Minister of Papua and New Guinea
Inaugural holder	Michael Somare
Formation	16 September 1975
Deputy	Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea
Salary	PGK346,037/US$ 97,201 annually (2015)
Website	https://pmnec.gov.pg/

The prime minister of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea (Tok Pisin: Prai Minista bilong Papua Niugini) is Papua New Guinea's head of government, elected by the National Parliament and formally appointed by the Governor-General of Papua New Guinea. The prime minister serves as the head of his party, the head of the coalition government, and the chairman of the National Executive Council.

Constitutional basis

The prime minister is chosen by the National Parliament and then formally appointed by the governor-general. Section 142 of the Constitution of Papua New Guinea provides for the election of a prime minister to occur at the first meeting of parliament after a general election. In the event of a vacancy in the office, the speaker of the national parliament must immediately call a meeting of parliament if it is not in session and proceed to the election of a new prime minister.^[2]

Where the parliament passes a motion of no confidence in the prime minister in accordance with section 145 of the constitution, the governor-general must dismiss the prime minister from office. The prime minister may also be removed by the governor-general if the parliament determines they are unfit for office on health grounds,^[2] or may resign voluntarily in accordance with section 146 of the constitution.^[3]

History

The office of Prime Minister was preceded by the Chief Minister.

2011–2012 constitutional crisis

From December 2011, the office was disputed between Peter O'Neill of the People's National Congress Party and Sir Michael Somare of the National Alliance Party; the latter eventually supported O'Neill as Prime Minister on 3 August 2012, thus ending the constitutional crisis.

Department of the Prime Minister

The Department of the Prime Minister has the task of providing administrative services to the restoration exercise as well as advising the Prime Minister and other government leaders. After a July 1995 cabinet reshuffle by Julius Chan, functions of the department were expanded.^[4]

Office

The office of the prime minister and other key government offices were initially located in Konedobu before being relocated to Waigani shortly after independence in 1975. Since April 2024, the Prime Minister's Office has been located at the newly-constructed Melanesia Haus, located opposite the main entrance to the National Parliament House.^[5]^[6]

List of prime ministers of Papua New Guinea (1975–present)

Political parties

Pangu Pati (Pangu)

People's Progress Party (PPP)

People's Democratic Movement (PDM)

People's National Congress (PNC)

National Alliance Party (NAP)

Status

Denotes acting prime minister

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Election	Term of office			Political party
No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Election	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Political party
1		Michael Somare (1936–2021)	1977	16 September 1975	11 March 1980	4 years, 177 days	Pangu^[7]^[8]^[9]
2		Sir Julius Chan (1939–2025)	—	11 March 1980	2 August 1982	2 years, 144 days	PPP^[7]^[8]
(1)		Michael Somare (1936–2021)	1982	2 August 1982	21 November 1985	3 years, 111 days	Pangu^[7]^[8]^[9]
3		Paias Wingti (born 1951)	1987	21 November 1985	4 July 1988	2 years, 226 days	PDM^[7]^[8]
4		Sir Rabbie Namaliu (1947–2023)	—	4 July 1988	17 July 1992	4 years, 13 days	Pangu^[7]^[8]
(3)		Paias Wingti (born 1951)	1992	17 July 1992	30 August 1994	2 years, 44 days	PDM^[8]
(2)		Sir Julius Chan (1939–2025)	—	30 August 1994	27 March 1997	2 years, 209 days	PPP^[8]^[9]
5		John Giheno (1949–2017)	—	27 March 1997	2 June 1997	67 days	PPP
(2)		Sir Julius Chan (1939–2025)	—	2 June 1997	22 July 1997	50 days	PPP^[8]^[9]
6		Bill Skate (1953–2006)	1997	22 July 1997	14 July 1999	1 year, 357 days	PNC^[8]^[9]
7		Sir Mekere Morauta (1946–2020)	—	14 July 1999	5 August 2002	3 years, 22 days	PDM^[9]
(1)		Sir Michael Somare (1936–2021)	2002 2007	5 August 2002	4 April 2011	8 years, 362 days	NAP^[7]
—		Sam Abal (born 1958) (acting)	—	13 December 2010	17 January 2011	35 days	NAP^[7]
—		Sam Abal (born 1958) (acting)	—	4 April 2011	2 August 2011	120 days	NAP^[7]
8		Peter O'Neill (born 1965)	2012 2017	2 August 2011	29 May 2019	7 years, 300 days	PNC
9		James Marape (born 1971)	2022	30 May 2019	Incumbent	6 years, 27 days	Pangu

Timeline

This is a graphical lifespan timeline of prime ministers of Papua New Guinea. They are listed in order of office (Somare, Chan, and Wingti are shown in order of their first premierships).

Notes

^ Equivalent to AU$160,815, 15 January 2015

References

^ "Salaries and Remuneration Commission – Determinations – 2015" (PDF). parliament.gov.pg. Papua New Guinea National Parliament. 15 January 2015.
^ ^a ^b "Part VI" . Constitution of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, section 142 – via Wikisource.
^ "Part VI" . Constitution of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, section 146 – via Wikisource.
^ "Department of Prime Minister and NEC". Destination PNG. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ "PM's office relocated to Melanesia Haus". The National. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
^ "PM opens Melanesia Haus". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 17 April 2024. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "Background Note: Papua New Guinea". US State Department. April 2007. Retrieved 14 August 2007.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Dorney, Sean (2001). Papua New Guinea: people, politics and history since 1975. ABC Books. ISBN 0-7333-0945-3.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f May, R.J. (2001). State and society in Papua New Guinea: the first twenty five years. Crawford House Publishing. ISBN 1-86333-204-9.

[1] Equivalent to AU$160,815, 15 January 2015

[2] "Salaries and Remuneration Commission – Determinations – 2015" (PDF). parliament.gov.pg. Papua New Guinea National Parliament. 15 January 2015.

[s142-3] "Part VI" . Constitution of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, section 142 – via Wikisource.

[4] "Part VI" . Constitution of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, section 146 – via Wikisource.

[5] "Department of Prime Minister and NEC". Destination PNG. Retrieved 4 January 2023.

[6] "PM's office relocated to Melanesia Haus". The National. Retrieved 17 April 2024.

[7] "PM opens Melanesia Haus". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 17 April 2024. Retrieved 17 April 2024.

[statedept-8] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "Background Note: Papua New Guinea". US State Department. April 2007. Retrieved 14 August 2007.

[dorney-9] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Dorney, Sean (2001). Papua New Guinea: people, politics and history since 1975. ABC Books. ISBN 0-7333-0945-3.

[may-10] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f May, R.J. (2001). State and society in Papua New Guinea: the first twenty five years. Crawford House Publishing. ISBN 1-86333-204-9.

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