ICCC Commissioner refutes fake Lae PMV fare schedule

Independent Consumer and Competition Commission (ICCC) Commissioner Roy Daggy has dismissed a fare schedule circulating on social media, describing it as fake and unauthorised.

In an interview with NBC News, Mr Daggy warned the public against sharing the misleading document, saying it was not an official ICCC-approved fare schedule for Lae.

"This is a fake document and not an ICCC-authorised schedule for Lae. There is no increase," Mr Daggy said.

He clarified that approved PMV fares for licensed and gazetted routes in Lae Urban were adjusted from K1.50 to K1.80, effective as of 30th.

Daggy stressed that the approved fare applies to passengers travelling along complete routes and does not permit PMV operators to charge additional fares for short-distance trips or cut routes.

He also reminded PMV operators that student concession fares must be applied to eligible students.

Meanwhile, the ICCC said rising fuel costs had prompted the Commission to bring forward the phased fare adjustment across Papua New Guinea.

The adjustment includes a 20 per cent increase in bus fares across centres and routes, as well as a 14 per cent phased increase in taxi fares, applicable to Port Moresby and other centres where taxi services operate.

The Commission said a complete schedule of interim adjusted fares for all centres would be published in the National Gazette.

The ICCC will also work with relevant authorities, including the Road Traffic Authority, Police Traffic Directorate and Provincial Administrations, to ensure compliance and enforcement of approved fares under the Prices Regulation Act and other applicable laws.

The Commission has urged the public and PMV operators to rely only on officially approved fare schedules and avoid circulating misleading information on social media.