Plans to buy vehicles for Lae police

THE Police Department will set funding aside to buy new vehicles for Lae police, Minister Jelta Wong says.
Wong said this after Police Commissioner Gari Baki issued a circular three weeks ago to all provincial police commanders to stop hiring vehicles.
Baki said the police force was faced with a budget constraint so it needed to tighten up on spending.
“I’ve spoken to the (Lae) Met Supt and we’ve agreed to do an asset management programme for the police stations,” Wong said.
“We will find out how many police vehicles we have and from there, through our donor agencies and the police modernisation programme, we will issue out vehicles accordingly.
“The hire car system has lowered drastically so we will put some money into buying new vehicles for Lae police.
“Lae is the second largest city so it needs to be well managed.”
Wong said the importance of Lae, as the industrial hub of the country and a growing city, could not be overlooked and police in the city needed assistance.
He added that Lae residents needed to change their attitude and mindset and work with police.