What Are the State Services Under the Constitution?

Part VII of the Constitution establishes the State Services and sets the rules that govern all of them.

Section 188 — the four State Services

• the National Public Service;
• the Police Force;
• the Papua New Guinea Defence Force; and
• the Parliamentary Service.

Acts of Parliament may make provision for other State Services (s 188(2)).

Section 195 — organisation and employment

Subject to Part VII, Acts of Parliament may make provision for the structures and organisations of the State Services, the employment of persons in them, and the terms and conditions of appointment and employment. The principal statutes are the Public Services (Management) Act 1995 and the Parliamentary Service Act 1997.

Section 193 — appointments to senior offices

Section 193 applies to a defined list of offices, including:

• (a) all offices in the National Public Service whose occupants are directly responsible to the National Executive Council or to a Minister — that is, departmental heads;
• (b) members of the Boundaries Commission;
• (c) the office responsible for administering the Government broadcasting service (or the chairman or president of the responsible board or commission);
• (d) the persons, including board and commission members, responsible for administering any of the State Services;
• (e) the Commissioner of Police;
• (f) the Commander of the Defence Force;
• (g) the Secretary to the National Executive Council; and
• (h) such other offices as an Act prescribes,

other than the offices of the members of the Public Services Commission.

Senior officers are within the Leadership Code

Section 26 brings within the Leadership Code all heads of Departments of the National Public Service, all heads of or members of the boards or other controlling bodies of statutory authorities, the Commissioner of Police, the Commander of the Defence Force, and senior diplomatic and consular officials prescribed by law. The section 27 duties and annual returns apply to all of them.

Part VIIA — Regulatory Statutory Authorities

Part VIIA deals with Regulatory Statutory Authorities: a body corporate established by an Act to perform specific statutory functions, or incorporated by authority of an Act, and declared by an Act to be a body to which the Part applies. Section 208B governs appointments to specified offices in those authorities.

These bodies exist because section 140 permits an Organic Law or statute to confer powers, functions, duties or responsibilities on a person or authority outside the National Executive.

Division 6 — disciplined forces

Section 207 defines a disciplined force as the Police Force, the Defence Force, and any other force or service established by or under a statute and declared by an Organic Law to be a disciplined force for the purposes of the Division. A person acting under the direction of a member of such a force, as required or authorised by law, is deemed to be a member of it.

Section 208 then requires an Organic Law to relieve members from responsibility for the consequences of carrying out lawful orders, and to shift compensation liability to the responsible authority.