John Pundari has been Speaker of the National Parliament, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and has served as the Minister of Finance and Rural Development from 20 December 2020 to 2021.
10 Facts About John Pundari
John Pundari founded the Advance Papua New Guinea Party in May 1999, with twenty-two MPs, announcing his intention to challenge for the premiership.
John Pundari accused Prime Minister Bill Skate's government of persistent political interference in administrative processes, including police investigations, and of a general lack of ethics.
Australia had begun deporting to a detention camp in Papua New Guinea asylum seekers who had arrived by boat in Australia; John Pundari opposed the sending of 1,000 additional detainees to the camp.
John Pundari founded the Papua New Guinea Revival Party and led it into the 2002 election.
John Pundari retained his seat in the 2007 election, this time as a member of the National Advance Party, and was appointed Minister for Mining by Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare in July 2010.
Somare was replaced as prime minister by Peter O'Neill in August 2011, and John Pundari lost his position in government.
John Pundari is an active member and leader of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Papua New Guinea.
The Honorable John Pundari, was recognized as a Companion of the Order of St Michael for his services to his country as a Member of the National Parliament, by Queen Elizabeth II on her birthday in 2014.
In 2022, John Pundari founded the Liberal Party to compete in the 2022 Papua New Guinean general election.