Bulolo district liquor ban extension proposal rejected

THE Morobe provincial liquor licencing board has refused to extend the liquor ban in Bulolo district for another 12 months.
The extension, proposed by the Bulolo joint district planning and budget priority committee in October, was rejected  because the preceding liquor ban in April to September had affected operations of liquor traders in the district.
On Nov 20, during a special meeting to discuss the Bulolo liquor ban issue, a copy of a petition by liquor traders in Bulolo to the governor was presented to the board.
According to a press statement released yesterday, the petition had highlighted some of the negative impacts of the lengthy ban on the liquor traders and the communities.
 This included difficulty in repaying loans, loss of employment, promotion of black markets and homebrew.
Board chairman Bill Singoling said the board had rejected the request for the liquor ban but had referred it higher authorities to direct the district administration to open up genuine dialogue with the liquor traders in reaching a beneficial solution.
He said at the moment, there was no liquor ban in place.
Mr Singoling, however, added that the district would still request for the usual imposition of liquor ban during the festive season.