Constituents urged to vote peacefully

By GYNNIE KERO
THE people of Goroka have been urged to conduct themselves in an orderly and peaceful manner when voting for the vacant Goroka Open seat gets underway today.
Acting Electoral Commissioner Simon Sinai said millions of kina were spent on holding such elections, money which could have been used in other national development projects.
The commission’s budget for the Goroka by-election was K6.5 million, with 22 candidates contesting the seat won by Henry Ame in the 2017 general election.
His victory was challenged in an election petition, resulting in a court process which took more than two years.
“Polling goes ahead tomorrow (today),” Sinai said.
“We want it to be free and fair and my appeal to the people is to cooperate because the by-election came about following a court order.”
Northern Command police commander Assistant Police Commissioner Peter Guinness assured the people and election officials yesterday that police would provide security.
Guinness drew 200 officers from Morobe and Madang for the one-day polling.