Officers beef up presence

 THE Duke of York Islands in Kokopo, East New Britain, will soon have a team of four police officers stationed there.

Kokopo district administrator Ekonia Walom said three police officers were now just waiting to join the lone officer serving on the island.

He said their transfer to the islands would happen as soon as the maintenance at the police station and three houses are completed.

Walom said from the K1 million allocated to law and order under the Kokopo district 2014 budget; K350,000 is now being used to renovate the island police station and the three houses.

He said police presence had been missing for years due to the deteriorating facilities on the islands and welcomed the move by the Kokopo district to fund the maintenance.

Walom said all maintenance was expected to be complete at the end of this year.

He said the ratio of 17,000 people to four police officers was manageable for a start.

The Duke of York Islands is a two-hour boat ride from mainland Kokopo and is usually a transit stop for New Irelanders from Namatanai travelling to Kokopo for business.