Women and youths want ban imposed

WOMEN and youths from Bumbu to Bumayong are pushing for the Morobe provincial government to re-impose the alcohol ban there.
The mothers told a meeting at Malahang on Saturday that in the three days since the ban had been lifted, there had been more fighting between youths, spouses, plus armed hold-ups and unruliness.
Women from a company compound at Chinatown, who declined to be named out of fear of retribution, said that drunks had smashed vehicles at 5.30pm on Friday “in celebration of the lifting of the ban”.
They said they wanted the ban imposed again “for a very long time”.
Both the Chinatown and Bumayong women admitted that most of the youths were drunk on “steam”.
The lifting of the ban had made them come out and drink “steam” openly, in the guise of drinking beer and be more belligerent.
Youths at Lutheran Church services at Malahang, Hunter, Busu Compound and Hunter said in separate statements on Sunday that they wanted alcohol banned indefinitely. They want the government take harsh measures against the brewing, sale and consumption of “steam”.
Others wanted companies that were using methanol as ingredients in their production processes to be “extremely tight in the control of their stock”.
They said some company officials were selling the methanol to distillers in settlements.