Richard Wilkins, Tina Arena to headline PM's party in a Chinese restaurant as first asylum seekers fly to PNG Source: DailyTelegraph IT'S party time at Kevin Rudd's preferred refugee destination Papua New Guinea - and pop queen Tina Arena and TV personality Richard Wilkins are cashing in. Arena and Wilkins are being paid tens of thousands of dollars to jet into crime-ridden Port Moresby on Saturday night to perform for the PNG Prime Minister at a charity dinner, sources told The Daily Telegraph. American music brothers Joel and Benji Madden were believed to have been jointly offered $175,000 to perform, but it is unknown whether they are attending. Prime Minister Peter O'Neill personally wrote to Wilkins to invite him to act as master of ceremonies for the dinner, saying he was forming a foundation to support local charities. Wilkins' fellow Today show star, Karl Stefanovic, is believed to have been approached first but declined. The dinner, to be attended by PNG political bigwigs, is being held at a popular Chinese restaurant called Dynasty, in a shopping mall. Tina Arena. The noshery, featuring red chairs and lazy susans, is a favourite haunt of Mr O'Neill, who has promoted policies there while presiding over lavish banquets. Wilkins' agent, Ralph Carr, said the Channel 9 personality was "honoured to be invited to help out and I'm sure Tina feels the same way." He declined to comment on how much Wilkins was being paid. Arena's agent, Grant Gillies, did not respond to messages seeking comment yesterday. First asylum seekers sent to PNG overnight The first asylum seekers to be sent to Papua New Guinea under Labor's tough border protection policy have left Australia. The group of 40 single adult men departed Christmas Island on Wednesday for Manus Island, where their refugee claims will be assessed under PNG law. Asylum seekers board the plane (from the bus to the plane through a line of security) bound for PNG at Christmas Island airport. Picture: Colin Murty Source: DailyTelegraph They are expected to arrive at Manus Island today. A video from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) shows the men being taken by bus to Christmas Island airport, where they boarded a plane that later took off. "This demonstrates that if you come to Australia by boat without a visa, you will not be settled here," DIAC said in a statement. Transfer to the regional processing centre on Manus Island will continue regularly, the department said. The group were originally due to arrive at Manus Island on Wednesday, but bad weather delayed the journey. DIAC says this first transfer formally brings into effect the Regional Settlement Arrangement, signed between Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill on July 19. Since the Rudd government announced its new hardline asylum seeker policy, 18 boats carrying 1452 people have arrived in Australian waters.