Police in the Northern Command will be in full force today (Thursday 24 September) for the Goroka by-elections.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Peter Guinness gave that assurance to both public, police and electoral Commission officials at the National Sports Institute (NSI) in Goroka yesterday.
“We will provide the by-elections for the people of Goroka electorate and I am confident we have enough personnel to deliver the polling.”
As the Divisional Commander, he has drawn more than 200 personnel from the command, which includes Lae Metro, Morobe and Madang personnel for the one-day polling.
He said the polling has been deferred twice but police will not deviate from their main reason for partnering with the EC to deliver a fair, free and safe by-elections.
The Commander appealed to the people of Goroka to elect their chosen leader in a more transparent voting process.
“I am appealing to the people of Eastern Highlands, particularly Goroka Open, to vote in a more transparent and honest manner. This is a court-ordered by election and we need to find a leader to represent us.”
Guinness also warned border crossers not to cross their electoral boundaries into Goroka to vote as they have no right to do so. He said those who are ignorant will be easily dealt with so they must refrain from doing so.
(Assistant Commissioner of Police, Peter Guinness)