Police gear up

for possible trouble

Earlier this year, the Royal PNG constabulary was looking to wards the elections as a good “try-out” for a brand new range of command/communications vehicles and other equipment lined up for order under an Australian project aid package.

The total aid package co vering a five year period was to be worth Kina 13 M (SA29M) of which K 856,000 was for equipment Police Commission er David Tasion described as “urgently needed” for the na tional elections.

The list of equipment was drawn up by an Australian study team which spent five weeks in PNG last year.

Australia is shifting more emphasis onto project aid in its total aid package to PNG, the vast majority of which is direct budgetry support.

The police equipment list

suited the aims of that project aid shift and the needs of the PNG Police Department admir ably.

However, it didn’t fit in with what the Wingti Government saw as its priorities.

The project aid to the police stalled as the Commissioner was told, much to his annoyance, that he wouldn’t have enough money to main tain the new vehicles, boats and communications equipment.

Putting as brave a face on it as they could, the police fronted up to a news conference in early June saying that although resources were stretched, any one wanting to make trouble during the elections had better watch out. 1,999 policemen are being deployed throughout the coun try including riot squads.

The co-ordinator of the elec

tion operation, Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Tohian, said 21 senior officers including all assistant commissioners were being sent to the Pro vinces with wide powers of discretion to act to keep matters under control.

After the last elections in 1982, he said, supporters of some failed candidates caused trouble and set fire to property.

“This time we have about 1,500 candidates and there can be only 109 winners”, he said.

“By simple arithmetic there are going to be a lot of disgruntled candidates.” He warned candi dates that if they broke the law they would have to suffer the consequences. Deputy Police Commissioner Tohian said a police riot squad had been sent to Kerowagi. Kerowagi is the seat that has attracted the re cord number of 45 candidates.