Duban thanks police for election duties

By JUNIOR UKAHA
POLICE Minister Nixon Duban has thanked policemen and women throughout the country for their part in election security operations.
Speaking at his welcome parade last Thursday at the Bomana Police College in Port Moresby, Duban said many people had predicted this election would be disastrous but that had not been the case because of the stringent security.
“As one of the 4,000-plus candidates who ran for the 111 seats, I was admittedly concerned about safety issues for the voting public but more so whether every eligible voting Papua New Guinean would be given the opportunity to vote freely for the leaders of their choice,” Duban said.
He admitted there were problems experienced in some parts of the country during the election.
“I will not be telling the truth if I said the 2012 elections were trouble free
“There were security issues for the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary as well as administrative issues for the PNG Electoral Commission,” he said.
Duban paid credit to the people, saying they had risen to the occasion and allowed free, fair and safe elections.
He thanked the Australian and New Zealand military for their support in providing logistics and transportation for members of the security forces taking part in election duties.
Ends……………………………………………………….