The Sovereignty Paradox: David Manning and the Dual Standards of PNG Policing

by MICHAEL J. PASSINGAN

Police Commissioner David Manning has held the top job in the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) since December 2019. On paper, his tenure is defined by the language of modern reform: hundreds of corrupt officers dismissed, modernized recruitment restarted, and a highly publicized digital case management system launched.

Yet beneath this polished public relations veneer sits a troubling paradox. As Commissioner Manning systematically imports foreign Commonwealth officers to police PNG's ranks and communities, he presides over a structure that shields his own office from the very accountability he claims to champion.

The doubts surrounding Manning’s leadership began at the very beginning of his tenure. Lacking a university degree, his 2019 appointment was immediately challenged.

In January 2021, the Waigani National Court agreed with the challenge, finding that the dual role of Commissioner and Secretary of the Department of Police was unlawful on qualifications grounds, and ordered Manning to vacate the office.

While the Supreme Court ultimately reversed the decision and allowed him to keep his job, it did so on a pure technicality: it ruled that the "Secretary of Police" position had no constitutional foundation to begin with. The ruling didn't prove Manning was qualified; it simply proved the secondary job he was appointed to didn't legally exist. Ever since, this administrative loophole has been treated by the administration as a sweeping vindication.

Nowhere is the double standard of accountability more visible than in the handling of personal allegations against the Commissioner.

When serious historical rape and unlawful confinement allegations involving a West New Britain woman resurfaced, the political response was immediate defensive maneuvering. The Police Minister attacked the Opposition for "politicization," while the administration insisted there was no evidence to warrant charges.

But the institutional response to the investigator, Detective Senior Sergeant Tinol Pakiapon, revealed how the system really works:

Pakiapon pursued the case, eventually applying for an arrest warrant against Manning.
In response, Pakiapon was suspended, dismissed from the force, and arrested on criminal charges of "causing disaffection to the constabulary."
This heavy-handed retaliation backfired. In August 2024, the Waigani Committal Court dismissed all charges against Pakiapon. Magistrate Albert Daniels ruled that Pakiapon’s actions were a lawful exercise of his duties, clearing him of criminal wrongdoing.

The court's decision laid bare a grim reality: the RPNGC’s disciplinary machinery was weaponized to destroy an investigator who dared to look upward.

Against this backdrop of personal controversy, Manning’s flagship reform is the integration of sworn Commonwealth officers into high-ranking line positions. Foreign officers have been installed as Provincial Police Commanders in flashpoint regions like Enga, East New Britain, and New Ireland, as well as inside the sensitive Internal Affairs and National Fraud directorates.

Manning has repeatedly praised their "neutrality" and lack of local clan ties. But let's call this what it is: not mentoring, but substitution.

By placing non-citizens in direct operational command, local officers are locked out of the vital command experience needed to build long-term institutional strength. It signals to the nation that Papua New Guineans are fundamentally incapable of policing themselves.

Worse, because the Fraud and Internal Affairs directorates ultimately report to Manning, these newly imported "neutral" divisions remain legally powerless to investigate the very man who appointed them.

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