Videos of Justin Tkachenko’s daughter at the coronation of Charles III and the costs of the 30-person delegation sparked controversy in the country and led to the minister’s resignation.
Papua New Guinea’s Foreign Minister Justin Tkachenko tendered his resignation on Friday. At the origin of the decision was the controversy surrounding the flight to London for the coronation of King Charles III, which took place on 6 May.
Tkachenko’s resignation was announced after the minister consulted with Prime Minister James Marape.
I want to make sure that recent events do not interfere with the official visits and summits that we will have with all world leaders in the coming weeks. I also want to make sure that the truth on this issue is exposed and that misinformation and lies are corrected,” Tkachenko said. CNN International.
At the center of the controversy is the cost and size of the delegation from Papua New Guinea, a Commonwealth country whose head of state is the King of England, who has traveled to London for the coronation ceremony. According to the Reuters, The delegation that traveled to the English lands consisted of 30 members, and the cost of the trip was about one million dollars, or approximately 914 thousand euros. Among the passengers were Tkachenko and his daughter Savannah, who became the target of criticism after sharing videos documenting the entire trip on the social network TikTok.
Anger erupted in the hearts of the citizens, who demanded his resignation and did not spare themselves from insulting the minister’s daughter. In an interview with Australia ABCOn Wednesday, Tkachenko confirmed that Savannah was “shocked” and called citizens “primitive animals”, comments that sparked protests in the capital, Port Moresby, during the day on Friday.
The apology came later, according to the local newspaper. Express Mail. The external affairs official maintained that the comments were “totally misunderstood”, and were only targeted at those who had made “disgusting comments” about his daughter.
The prime minister will be forced to intervene in the case, and ask them to accept the apology of the resigned minister. James Marapp has already revealed that he will officiate the state visits of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden early this month, and more than a dozen Pacific Island leaders.
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