Five police chaplains were commissioned at the Police headquarters in Port Moresby.
Chief Inspector Fr Michael Lau (NCD/Central Chaplain), Chief inspector Fr Joseph Labigi (Islands Chaplain), Chief Inspector Rev. William Pok (Coastal Chaplain), Chief Inspector Rev. David Yuwi (Highlands Chaplin), and Chief Inspector Fr. George Baruka (Bougainville Police Service Chaplain) recited an oath of office and vowed to perform their duties with the objective of bringing effective change to the police force.
In his congratulatory message, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Donald Yamasombi, said the spiritual welfare of the police force is an important aspect that needs a lot of attention and support.
Yamasombi said the first task of the chaplains will be to visit with families of police personnel currently housed in various police barracks. Yamasombi said police officers face issues that usually start within the home, and escalates into the work environment.
“Apart from running the ministry (with) church service (and) fellowships, make it your duty to go out there and visit the family,” Yamasombi expressed. “Each and everyday a police officer comes to work (and) is not in the right frame of mind because they have family issues. That is why it is important that you put more focus (on) families.”
Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner of Police urged the chaplains to also look into discipline, while administration can shift its focus to other areas of the force needing support.