He has been a member of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea since 2007, representing the electorate of Rigo Open (in Central Province).
Pala had, until then, served as parliamentary secretary to Dr Puka Temu, the Minister of Lands and Physical Planning and Mining.
[8] At the start of August 2011, he again defected to the Opposition, and this time helped to successfully bring down the government in a parliamentary motion of no confidence.
[9][10] Pala had previously served as parliamentary clerk, but resigned that position to stand (successfully) for Parliament in the 2007 general election.
[4][11] In 2009, he publicly supported Eastern Highlands Provincial Governor Malcolm 'Kela' Smith who petitioned the government to "intervene to protect our citizens of [sic] the action of Asian businessmen", who he claimed had "exploited locals" by selling "cheap goods and counterfeit products", and by forcing employees to work long hours for low wages.