Salamaua wants police station

A COMMUNITY leader at Kela village, ward five, in the Salamaua local level government area of Huon Gulf, Morobe, has called for a police station to be built in their area.
Phillip Gubab said this during a peace reconciliation ceremony on Wednesday following fighting last August that saw 57 houses burnt, properties destroyed and 226 people made homeless.
The fighting is a result of a feud among the villages of Kela and Laugui, Kamiatum and Bopdubi over World War II relics at Kela. It was suspected by the locals that the dumping site contained guns and ammunitions used during WW II.
Soldiers from the Engineering Battalion at Igam in Lae intervened and cordoned off the area while putting up a no-go zone for the people at that site.
However, some people from Laugui, Kamiatum and Bopdubi villages attempted to dig up those guns but were stopped by Kela villagers.
In retaliation, Kela village came under attack during a night ambush which saw many villagers suffer.
Gubab said that was why police intervention in the first place was very important and there had to be a police station built there to monitor law and order. He said despite the memorandum of agreement signed to end law and order problems in the area, there was no guarantee that youths would uphold that.