Former Papua New Guinea prime minister charged with perjury over inquirr

Former Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Peter O’Neill was charged on Monday with providing false evidence in an inquiry into a multi-million-dollar government loss on an investment deal.
O’Neill, who remains a lawmaker in the Pacific island nation’s parliament, denied the three charges lodged by police that stem from when he was the government’s leader in 2014.
O’Neill’s government obtained a 1.3 billion Australian dollar ($878 million) loan through the Swiss-based investment bank UBS to buy a 10.1% stake in the Australian stock exchange-listed energy exploration company Oil Search Ltd.
The government eventually sold its stake at a loss and a three-year inquiry into the deal culminated this year in a recommendation of charges against O’Neill for providing false testimony.
Each charge carries a potential prison sentence of 14 years.