YANGORU-SAUSSIA PEOPLE PROTEST FOR STRONGER LAW & ORDER ACTION IN WEWAK
By Thelma ALLINGHAM
Hundreds of frustrated cocoa farmers, SME owners, and the traveling public from Yangoru-Saussia District staged a peaceful convoy protest in Wewak last week Friday demanding stronger action against rising petty crimes.
The protest saw a massive convoy of PMV trucks and buses, all heading towards Wewak Town and then to the East Sepik Provincial Assembly.
At the East Sepik Provincial Assembly Office, representatives from the East Sepik Provincial Administration were present to receive the protestors.
The demonstration was sparked by an attempted armed robbery in the heart of Wewak last Tuesday, where a cocoa farmer was targeted. In response, ward councillors from Yangoru-Saussia, along with angry farmers, gathered to push for stronger measures to curb crime.
West Yangoru LLG President Emmanuel Ganai said;
“We cannot come down to Wewak Town and do our business in fear of being robbed every time. These petty crimes must be stopped!”
The group has called on the Provincial Executive Council (PEC) to introduce a Selective Eviction Policy, aimed at removing troublemakers from Wewak Urban and preventing further criminal activities.
President Ganai warned the youth of Wewak to cease their criminal activities or face similar consequences as those involved in Tuesday’s incident.
He said “Sepik Highway farmers are constantly targeted by criminals, and we have had enough!”
The protestors hope their concerns will be heard, with the expectation that law and order in Wewak will soon be restored. It now remains to be seen whether the East Sepik Provincial Government will take decisive action in response to the demonstration
