Lae killings ‘on the rise’

By JIMMY KALEBE
KILLING in and around Lae city seems to be on the rise and requires immediate attention by the authorities, says city law and order committee chairman Sam Oyaya.
He raised the concern after several killings were reported over the past few weeks – the latest being that of a police officer attached to the rural patrol unit in Morobe.
“There is a need for the Morobe government to effectively support the Lae city law and order committee,” Oyaya said.
“We need to create awareness on issues that ignite fights and killings that are experienced in the city currently.”
Oyaya said the recent killings were the result of homebrew and marijuana consumption, especially in the settlements.
“School-aged people are also into taking those illegal substances which are dangerous to their health and degrading in nature,” he said.
“This leads to them getting involved in activities not acceptable in the community, thus causing disorder among the people.”
Oyaya suggested stopping the sale of yeast in the city to help reduce the manufacture of homebrew.
“The authorities now have to come up with a way in which yeast can be sold only to genuine customers and not to people who might end up brewing homebrew.”
Oyaya said the other alternative was to evict illegal settlers.