PORT MORESBY – The organisers of the Pacific Games, set to be held next month in Port Moresby, have said a campaign to discredit the readiness of the stadiums will have a negative impact on ticket sales.

The comments come after Papua New Guinea opposition leader Don Polye called for an independent engineer to declare the facilities safe, saying the work had been rushed to completion.

“I strongly call on the government to certify these buildings and these structures before they’re cleared for use for the Games,” he said in comments reported in the Post Courier.

But Pacific Games Organising Committee chief executive Peter Stewart rubbished the claims, and said the committee has “every confidence that these venues are being built to world-class standards”.

“All of these venues are being built by international companies with strong reputations for quality,” he said.

Port Moresby will host more than 20 Pacific countries – including Australia and New Zealand – for the games, which will run from July 4 to July 18.

Polye had been vocal in his disapproval of the preparations and in March called for the opening ceremony to be delayed.

Stewart blamed the criticisms on the condition of other facilities, such as the half-built Sir Hubert Murray Stadium, which are not official games venues.

“We have more than enough venues available to do all the things that we need to do to deliver a fantastic games,” he said.

“We do believe that some people look at some of the venues like that and think that they are games venues, and therefore their state of readiness is indicative of how the games are.”

He said a “campaign” to instil doubt in the games would affect sales and “people seem to be holding back” on buying tickets to outdoor venues.

Stewart said he was “very confident” the games would run smoothly come July 4.

“A few small things will definitely go wrong behind the scenes, they have in every event that I’ve ever been involved with,” he said. “None of them will be games-critical.”

Meanwhile, Team Australia to the Pacific Games is enthusiastically counting down the days to their debut appearance.

In what will be the first step taken towards an expanded continental games, both Australia and New Zealand will participate in rugby sevens, sailing, taekwondo and weightlifting.

With the opening ceremony only four weeks away, Australia’s Chef de Mission, Malcolm Page, says that Australia is excited about taking their first step towards being a permanent part of the Pacific Games.

Page believes that in the long term, the move makes sense, and said that Australia and New Zealand are in the Pacific and shared love for the region, saying that it was great for them to be part of the games.

Australia’s Chef de Mission added that competition was going to be tough – with Pacific athletes being some of the best in the four sports to be contested.

He says that he expected this year’s games to be taken to a whole new level by PNG.

Having been in the country a few months back, he said the atmosphere and culture of Papua New Guinea was really shining through. And he was adamant that the 2015 Pacific Games would be an impressive event for the Pacific.

The Games will be officially opened on July 4 by Duke of York Prince Andrew, it has been announced.

The news represents a major boost for the event in the Papua New Guinean capital while under scrutiny recently due to concerns over readiness of venues.

Organising Committee chief executive Stewart believes Prince Andrew’s presence highlights the global significance of the event.

“We are excited with the news as this deems that the Games is significant and as a result we have a Royal Family member to officiate at the Opening Ceremony,” he said.

Tickets are still available for the Opening Ceremony, with general admission prices starting at 100 kina or around ($37).

Around 3000 athletes from 23 nations are due to compete across 28 different sports.