Village court official calls for support to address law, order

A VILLAGE court official in remote Nawaeb in Morobe is calling on the government to support them function effectively amidst the rising law and order issues in his community.
Kekesing Zenga, a village court officer in Bambok village, Nabag local level government (LLG) has been running the local court for the last five years, despite not being on the payroll.
He said village court officers were mandated by the government and had important roles in ensuring law and order in communities but needed financial support to do their jobs properly.
He said a lack of respect for village court officers also impacted on their ability to perform their roles effectively.
Zenga said he had been working in the village court for over 15 years but the last five has been off the payroll despite being reappointed.
He said there were three other village court officials in Nabag LLG facing the same dilemma.
He said the remoteness of the villages put them in a far worse position.
Bambok has no proper road access, with no telecommunication network.
“We’ve had escapees around here; but how can we do our duty when we don’t have necessary assistance to play our part. We may put our lives in danger,” he said.
Zenga said the abuse of illegal substances such as drugs and homebrew was rising in the village.
“We want our authorities to come into our remote villages, talk with our community leaders to recognise us and stand behind us to enforce law and order.
“My more urgent call is for them to please put us back into the system. Because when we’re busy with court matters, we cannot plant coffee, vanilla to take care of our families.”