By VENESSA GISAO, UPNG Journalism Student
THE Oro Provincial Government has committed K6 million towards improving law and order across the province, releasing an initial K1 million yesterday to officially launch the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) Provincial Police Command Reserve Police Training Program.
The initiative follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Oro Provincial Government and the RPNGC in September 2024 which provides the recruitment of 100 reserve police personnel.
The funding is aimed at supporting the recruitment and training of reserve police officers to assist the RPNGC in maintaining law and order across Oro Province.
The announcement was made by the Governor of Oro Province Hon. Gary Juffa, as direct response to persistent police manpower shortages that continue to impact the front-line policing operations.
“Oro Provincial Government, we are taking this very seriously and we are always committed. We’ve made law and order our priority for the province since the beginning of my term in 2022 and I declared that law and order would be the number one agenda for the provincial government,” said Governor Juffa.
The financial commitment also include plans to construct and restore local police houses, vehicles, stations, posts and district setups across the province.
Godwin Dukaduka, the Director for Community Policing for RPNGC said: “We hope that the training program be successful so they can be a good support for the RPNGC regular officers on the ground and can bring better policing better up and look after our people in the province.”
Governor Juffa highlighted that they will be targeting the rising criminal activities, restore public services shut down by lawlessness and increase police presence across rural areas.
The provincial government reaffirms its commitment to reinforcing provincial law and order structures, calling on local communities, stakeholders and partner agencies to support the program’s roll out.