Nupiri appeals to stop violence

A SOUTHERN Highlands candidate has appealed to his supporters to stop the violence following the recent election-related chaos in Mendi.
Candidate Peter Nupiri said the provincial capital’s reputation had been tarnished after attacks on government and private property last week sparked by delays in the counting.
“Politics must not divide us physically, rather we must respect different views and always stand united to develop our province,” he said. Nupiri said the people of Southern Highlands deserved to live in a peaceful environment.
The alleged cause of violence on Aug 18 was forceful taking of ballot boxes locked away at the Mendi Police Station by armed men which were then burnt on the street.
On the same day, armed men fired shots indiscriminately in Yaken village outside Mendi town injuring and killing several locals.
The dead were two students, a boy in Grade 8 and a girl in Grade 12.