Recruits to boost SHP police manpower

LACK of police manpower in Southern Highlands will be boosted next month when a total of 120 police recruits graduate from the Bomana training college in Port Moresby.
The province has lacked police personnel and, so far, only 118 police officers have been manning the province and its vast population of 890,000 people.
The training is being funded by the provincial police department, with support from the provincial government.
Provincial police commander Supt Teddy Tei said these new recruits would serve in the rural areas in the province so that law and order problems were addressed at the community level.
He added that the rural police stations in Koroba, Margarima, Poroma, Kaupena and Tente, were being constructed by the different local MPs under their district services improvement programme (DSIP) funds.
He thanked Governor Anderson Agiru for taking the steps to recruit more police and recognising the need to enforce law in the province.
Tei said this was also the first time for a governor to embark on such an idea and recruit school leavers to train and become members of the police force.
He said 10 years ago, law and order was a big headache in the province, but they had come to a stage where it was now manageable. 
Tei said the crime rate in the province was low compared to other provinces and all crimes being committed were only in relation to tribal fights.
Acting rural police and community policing commander, Insp Benson Osil, who has also served the police force for over 40 years, said he had seen a lot of positive changes in the province’s law and order situation.
He attributed the success to community policing, MPs funding, peace and good order committees, churches partnerships, and the increase in sports and youth activities.