Sale of alcohol rife despite ban

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Thursday 04th April, 2013

By CLEMENT KAUPA
SALE of alcohol and abuse is rampant in the rural districts of Southern Highlands while an alcohol ban runs into its’ fourth year.
The only place where there was evidence of the ban being policed was in Mendi town,  councillor Samuel Mambo, of Imbonggu LLG said in Lae yesterday.
“Illegal alcohol is sold openly in trade stores in the districts and people drink alcohol in public places because police are not enforcing the liquor ban,” he claimed.
“The only place you see police arresting people consuming alcohol is in Mendi town,” Mambo said.
“Otherwise, alcohol is being traded and consumed in massive quantities in the face of the existing alcohol ban in the province.”
Mambo raised his concerns following this newspaper’s front-page story on Tuesday about the arrest of four cops for allegedly escorting a vehicle loaded with beer into SHP.
Mambo urged police commissioner Tom Kulunga and the justice system to take action, said.
He said that the SHP Liquor Licensing Commissioner was “sleeping” and doing nothing about the booming alcohol trade and abuse situation in the province.
At present a carton of SP brown costs K312 which is 200 times more than its retail price compared with its  neighbouring highlands towns of Kundiawa, Mt Hagen and Goroka.