Police go after Redscar thrash
SEVERAL police personnel cleaned the garbage of one the most untidy rendezvous zones in Madang town last Saturday with one silent slogan - just clean up the rubbish and dispose of it without saying anything to whoever is littering in front of you.
The police personnel of the traffic unit in fact, are using the above as their way of helping change the attitudes of people towards stewardship and respect of what is around them.
Senior Sgt Greg Maguli, a local Madang offspring is taking the lead in this approach to help change the mindset of people.
Last Saturday, the traffic cops were out cleaning the layers of rancid rubbish at Redscar, one of the popular and at times notorious rendezvous points of the town.
Redscar is often very busy in the evenings from 5pm to 10pm when PMVs are loading and unloading betelnut buyers and passengers for the Highlands provinces.
Sgt Maguli said sometimes it pays to work and let your actions speak without asking for cooperation, recognition and reward and leave it up to people to react.
He said this is the method his cops are employing to see if they can help change people’s mindsets towards respect for public property and one and other.
Sgt Maguli said their free community service each weekend is in response to the initiative of the Governor of Madang Sir Arnold Amet, who has led public servants to clean up the town and called on others to do the same in their neighbourhoods.
Sgt Maguli and his colleagues hope to attract residents of the Redscar area to regularly clean this part of the town and extend the message by actually doing the work.
He says in time, they hope to involve everyone in the Redscar area to keep their streets and neighbourhoods clean and free from any misdemeanor as well.
The traffic unit is located at Redscar; hence they are taking the lead to implement the provincial government’s decision there.
They hope to change the attitudes of the people and make them live respectful lives in the community.
The view of this career policeman is that “we have talked enough, it is time to work”.
Sgt Maguli said people have been repeatedly told about what is right and wrong and if many still cannot change then those who can, should allow their actions to speak and lead the way.
The Madang traffic police personnel hope to instill a character change in the Redscar neighbourhood and in the greater Madang community.
They say they will be leaving their patrol cars, offices and uniforms behind and once every week, will take to the streets in their civvies to help clean the area within the vicinity of their workplace at Redscar.
“Our view is to constantly go out there and clean up the Redscar area without saying anything to anyone.
“We will do this even if people mess up the place after we have cleaned it.
And by continuously cleaning the mess quietly, we hope to see if the message is being received,” Sgt Maguli said.
Columns