Mr Samuel Penias is responsible for the Non Tax Revenue Division (NTRD), the Internal Audit and Compliance Division (IACD), Corporate Services Division (CSD) and Provincial and District Financial Management Division (PDFMD). Mr Penias’ portfolio is responsible for all matters relating to revenue from non-tax sources, internal audit of processes, corporate services and financial management for the Provinces and Districts.

Prior to his current role from 2005 to 2011, Mr Penias was First Assistant Secretary and Assistant Secretary in the Provincial & District Management Division where he was responsible for providing financial services to the 22 Provinces and 89 Districts.  Previously he was Provincial Treasurer, Central Province from 2002 – 2005 responsible for financial administration.  Mr Penias spent eight years from 1994 – 2002 with the Internal Revenue Commission in a variety of roles including VAT Manager Wewak (VAT), Tax Auditor (Tax Audit Branch) and Company Assessor (Company Assessing Branch). He also has three years’ experience working as a Stamp Duty Officer in the Stamp Duty Office and took up his first role as a Sales Person in a private company.

Mr Penias holds a Bachelor in Business Management, University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) and a Diploma in Business Studies (Accounting Major), Divine Word University.

Mr Penias spent eight years from 1994 – 2002 with the Internal Revenue Commission in a variety of roles including VAT Manager Wewak (VAT), Tax Auditor (Tax Audit Branch) and Company Assessor (Company Assessing Branch). He also has three years’ experience working as a Stamp Duty Officer in the Stamp Duty Office and took up his first role as a Sales Person in a private company.

Mr Penias holds a Bachelor in Business Management, University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) and a Diploma in Business Studies (Accounting Major), Divine Word University.

Mr Stephen Nukuitu is responsible for the Financial Reporting & Compliance Division (FRCD), Financial Controls Division (FCD), Information and Communications Technology Division (ICTD) and Payments. Mr Nukuitu’s portfolio is responsible for providing advice relating to financial accounting and policies, management and reporting, the administration of funding to government bodies against budgets and information system and services. As delegate of the Secretary for Finance, Mr Nukuitu has membership or Directorship of several Boards including: Central Supply & Tenders Board (CSTB) and PNG 2018 Asia Pacific Economic Corporation Tenders Board (ASTB). He also serves as alternate chair representing the Secretary in Audit Committees and is Chairperson of the Financial Framework Review Technical Working Group.

Prior to his role as Deputy Secretary-Operations, he was appointed First Assistant Secretary for Accounting Framework & Standards Division from 2010 to 2013. He has also served in the roles of Assistant Secretary (AS) and Financial Controller (FC) when he was seconded to the Departments of Health and Police. Mr. Nukuitu commenced with Department of Finance in 2000 and experienced several job rotations in various branches and divisions.

Mr Nukuitu holds a Masters in Business Administration specialising in International Business; Masters in Project Management, both from the University of Southern Queensland, Australia; Bachelor and Diploma in Commerce with the University of Papua New Guinea and professional affiliations to the Institute of Certified Management Accountant (ICMA), Australia; Australian Institute of Management (AIM), Alumni of Australia New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG) and PNG-Australian Alumni Association (PNGAAA).

Mr Dominic Ira is responsible for the Internal Audit and Compliance Division (IACD), Government Office Allocation Committee (GOAC) and Financial Accountability & Inspection Division (FAID).

Prior to this Mr Ira held the position of First Assistant Secretary, Financial Control Division.

Mr Ira held a variety of financial positions including Principal Accountant, Audits & Financial Statement. He has 26 years’ experience in local level government, intergovernmental organisations and national government roles in the financial management field.

Mr Ira holds a Bachelor of Business – Accounting, from Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia; Diploma in Public Sector Audit and Accounting, CPFPA (London) with Papua New Guinea Institute of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Business (major in Accounting) from University of Papua New Guinea. He is also a member of Certified Practicing Accountants, Papua New Guinea.

Ms  Margaret Tenakanai is responsible for Corporate Services Division (CSD), Organisational Strategy Division (OSD) and Non-Tax Revenue Division (NTRD).

Ms Tenakanai is responsible for the collection of Non-Tax Revenue. She was first appointed to the role in 2010 and has managed a number of projects including installation of computerised receipting and going cashless, monitoring and compliance checks with the PNG Overseas Foreign Missions, review of Government Fees for five departments and the implementation of Land Lease Arrears Recovery Project Phase 1 in NCD as well as major reforms to align the Division with corporate plans. Ms Tenakanai is also the Treasurer for the Papua New Guinea Australian Alumni Association.

She was appointed as First Assistant Secretary Cash Management & Expenditure Division, CMECD, in 2012 where she spent two years responsible for managing and monitoring the PNG Government Cash flow before returning to the Non Tax Revenue Division.

Ms Tenakanai previously held the positions of Assistant Secretary Cash Management in 2008, Principal Accountant in 2001 and Revenue Accountant in 2000. She started her career as a Collector of Public Monies with the Cash Management and Expenditure Control Division and has worked with the Department of Finance for a total of 19 years.

Ms Tenakanai holds a Masters of Commerce (Applied Finance); graduate certificate in Governance and Public Policy, both from the University of Queensland, Australia; Bachelor of Commerce (Accountancy) and Diploma in Commerce, both from the University of Technology, Lae, Morobe Province.

Mr Tom Tiki is responsible for Provincial District Financial Management Division (PDFMD).

Mr Tiki joined the Department in 1991, and was appointed to the position in February 19, 2018. He oversees key projects such as Public Sector Audit Program, Payroll Audit and Phone Against Corruption. Under the public sector audit program 43 audit committees are established in agencies and over 100 internal auditors trained. Payroll Audit has covered over 20 agencies and saved millions while multiple analysis and assessment to Phone Against Corruption has been carried out.

Mr Tiki previously held a position of Assistant Secretary for Investigations Branch and has a total of over 27 years experiences in the public service.

Mr Tiki has a Bachelor in Accounting and a Diploma in Commerce both from University of Papua New Guinea. He is member of the PNG Institute of Internal Auditors and Information System Audit and Control Association (ISACA) PNG.

Mr. John Wohiemani held several managerial positions within the Department as Assistant Secretary for Momase under Provincial District Financial Management Division (PFMD) at one time, then Team Leader for Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) prior to being appointed as the current acting First Assistant Secretary for Corporate Services Division (CSD).

The Corporate Services division (CSD) plays a crucial role in providing sound advice and reporting to the Department on effective administrative support services such as ensuring that various processes and systems comply with relevant legislation, particularly the Public Finances Management Act (PFMA).Mr.Wohiemani’s added responsibilities within the Division include provision of high quality administrative services, PFM trainings including prudent management of the Department’s annual budget and developing a culture of excellence where a competent, willing and ethical workforce is empowered to achieve the Department’s organizational goals.

Representing Secretary Finance as a delegate of the Secretary, Mr. Wohiemani is the Member of the Board of Directors for National Maritime Safety Authority (NMSA). He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Directors for NMSA as of April 2024.    

He holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Sun Yat-san University in Republic of China, Bachelor of Art in Organizational Psychology at University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) and a Diploma and Advanced Diploma in Accounting at the International Training Institute (ITI).

Mr Metofa is responsible for managing the efficient processing of Government Payroll and Production of Public Accounts of the National Government. A major project currently undertaken is the Financial Framework Review. He was Chair of the Technical Working Group which produced the first Papua New Guinea country report on Public Finance Management (PFM) and its subsequent report, the PEFA Road Map, launched in 2015 by the Minister for Finance.  Mr Metofa is also a member of specialised Tender Boards, representing the Secretary, Department of Finance, in the Parliamentary Supply and Tenders Board, University of Goroka Supply and Tenders Board, National Judiciary and Support Services Supply and Tenders Board and Pharmaceutical Supply and Tenders Board.

Prior to his current position Mr Metofa was Assistant Secretary to the Frameworks Branch from 2008 – 2012. He held previous roles as Senior Accountant, Standards, Procedures and Audit and Accountant – Financial Statement and Audit, having joined the Department of Finance as a graduate after completing his Bachelor in 2001.

Mr Metofa holds a Masters in Accounting from Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia; Bachelor of Commerce from University of Papua New Guinea and Diploma in Economic Policy Analysis from National Research Institute.

Mr. Gabi Kila has clocked more than 25 years in the Public Service especially in the Department of Finance beginning with Provincial Finance Office Konedobu.

He commenced work as a junior officer and moved up the rank and file holding some very senior positions within the Department. He held the position of First Assistant Secretary Provincial and District Financial Management Division (FAS PDFM) for many years. This division is responsible for supervision and monitoring of all Provincial and District Finance Office operations in the 21 provinces and 86 districts of the country. These offices provide financial management services at the sub-national level where he has a vast knowledge of operations. Mr. Kila is also responsible for improvements in public finance management systems in the provinces and districts.

He holds a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG).

In the capacity of the First Assistant Secretary for ICTD, Mr Bero is responsible for the management and efficient provision of effective, reliable, and secure information Technology and communication services to assist in the effective delivery of the Department’s priorities and objectives.

Prior to his current role as, Mr. Bero was Assistant Secretary to Core Applications Support Branch in ICTD. He held previous roles as Senior Applications Officer in the Integrated Financial Management Systems (IFMS) Project within the Department. He also has prior experience working as a Database Administrator with the Bank South Pacific Ltd under its Graduate Development Program.

Mr Bero holds a Master’s Degree in Economics and Public Policy (MEc.PP) and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree majoring in Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science (MSCS) from the University of Papua New Guinea. Mr. Bero also has Diploma in Advance Networking from the National Institute of Technology (NIIT), India as well as Oracle Certified Courses from the Oracle University in Wellington, New Zealand

Mr. Charles Ikitae is currently the Acting First Assistant Secretary for Non-Tax Revenue Division (NTRD) where he is responsible for the management and collection of Non-Tax Revenues. Non-Tax Revenue includes; fees & charges that are collected by government departments, line agencies, public and statutory bodies. Prior to his current position, he held the position of Acting Assistant Secretary for Revenue Review & Compliance Branch under NTRD from 2018-2023.

Mr. Ikitae joined the Department of Finance in 2010 as a Graduate Accountant after completing his Bachelor Degree with Financial Reporting & Compliance Division (FRCD). During his term with FRCD, he was involved in the review of the Public Finances Management Act, 1995 and other policy related tasks. He held other positions as Senior Prevention & Deterrence Officer under FAID, Senior Revenue Research Officer under NTRD and Regional Coordinator-New Guinea Islands Region under PDFM.

While with Non-Tax Revenue Division, he was involved in the Cashless Receipting System rollout, recovery of land lease rental arrears in NCD, assisting in reviewing of government fees & charges for agencies, doing annual revenue budgets, implementation of the Non-Tax Revenue Administration Act, 2022 and involved in the development and roll-out of the GoPNG non-tax revenue on-line payment portal.

Mr. Ikitae has a Master of Business Administration from Doshisha University in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, Bachelor of Accountancy and Diploma of Accountancy both from Divine Word University in Madang, Madang Province, Papua New Guinea.

Mr. Michael Petrus is currently the acting First Assistant Secretary for the Payments Division where he is responsible for maintaining a robust payment process and reporting system including the management of the National Government Payroll system. Prior to his current position, he held the position of Assistant Secretary for the Highlands and Momase region with the Financial Accountability and Inspection Division (FAID) and also as acting Assistant Secretary-Momase with the Provincial District Financial Management Division (PDFMD).

Mr. Petrus joined the Department of Finance in 2009 as an Assistant Internal Auditor after completing his studies at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG). During his term with PDFMD, he was involved in ensuring that the COVID.19 bank reconciliations for the Momase region were brought up to date and he was also the chairman of the Finance Vetting Committee on subnational payments during the 2022 National General Elections.

Currently with the payment Division, he now ensures all payroll staff are equipped with advanced training in payroll processing and continues to provide a strong leadership in the payroll upgrade which will commence soon.

Mr. Petrus holds a Diploma and Bachelor from the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG).

Mr. Mose Puli is currently the First Assistant Secretary for Internal Audit and Compliance Division (IACD).

He joined the Department in 2008 after serving as an Accountant with L&A Construction. Currently he is the Acting First Assistant Secretary for the Internal Audit and Compliance Division. IACD promote efficiencies and effectiveness in maintaining a transparent governance system through providing an active public sector audit program and advice to GoPNG. In his capacity as Acting FAS, he manages Public Sector Audit Program (PSAP), Phone Against Corruption and also involve in Financial Analysis and Supervision Unit (BPNG FASU) Debt Recovery Committee manage by State Solicitor’s Office.  

He brings with him more than fifteen (15) years of professional experience in public sector auditing, compliance monitoring, evaluation, and financial management. Of these, over eleven (11) years have been focused on investigations, with more than four (4) years in senior management roles.

In 2022, he was confirmed as Assistant Secretary for Investigation, after acting in the position for more than four years.

He holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Accountancy and Diploma in Accountancy from the University of Papua New Guinea. He is a member of the PNG Institute of Internal Auditors (PNGIIA), Information System Audit and Control Association (ISACA), Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) and CPAPNG.