Basil: Morobe needs to address law and order

 By JUNIOR UKAHA

MOROBEANS living in Lae can venture into business activities only if law and order issues are adequately addressed, Bulolo MP Sam Basil says.

He told a law and order forum yesterday in Lae that Morobeans residing in the city had asked the provincial government to give them K11 million to start businesses.

“We can use this money to address law and order problems in Lae first,” Basil said.

“Later we can look at investments for Morobeans in Lae.”

Basil told the leaders and youths who gathered at the National Agriculture Research Institute conference room at 10-Mile that investmentscould only be conducive if law and order problems in the city were minimised. 

Basil used his district as an example, saying he had increased police manpower by enlisting 10 reserve officers in each LLG and bought them vehicles. He said the law and order situation had improved. 

He said the ratio in Lae was one police officer to 2,525 people which was way above the United Nations recommended ratio of one policeman to 400 people. 

“We need to use this money to recruit more police officers and buy them vehicles,” Basil said. 

Lae metropolitan commander Supt Iven Lakatani welcomed Basil’s comments.

“This is the way to go,” Lakatani said.

“How can you operate a business when law and order problems are high? Police manpower needed to be increased in line with the increase in population so that crime can be managed.”

Lakatani said this year Lae had not recruited any recruits from the Bomana Police College because of a shortage in police accommodation.