Police continue patrol at Morauta Haus

By JUNIOR UKAHA
POLICE presence at Morauta Haus will be maintained until “normalcy” is fully restored, according to the National Capital District metropolitan commander Supt Joseph Tondop.
Tondop said the building housed important government offices, including the office of the Prime Minister and National Executive Council and it was imperative police monitored the place.
He said a mobile squad unit comprising 30 men was stationed on the premises to ensure the peace and safety of the building’s occupants and state properties were maintained.
Tondop said he was out of the country when the ex-servicemen Group 1360 went on a rampage at Morauta Haus, destroying 11 vehicles and the glass walls of the building.
“I understand they must be upset over their entitlements but I’m not sure of the exact reasons for their actions.”
NCD Central commander Fred Sheekiot estimated the cost of damage at around K82,000.
Tondop confirmed that arrests had been made and some instigators of the melee were in custody and would appear in court.
Police reported last Friday that four men involved in the rampage had been arrested.
The brief indicated they were charged with one count each of unlawful assembly and wilful damage.
Tondop said two mobile squad units from Port Moresby comprising 60 men had been flown to Lae by the national government to monitor the violence that erupted over the weekend between Morobe youths and people of Highlands origin.