Madang town police station to be demolished as major K15 million infrastructure upgrade begins

The iconic but crumbling Madang Town Police Station will be formally decommissioned later this week before being demolished to make way for a K7 million modern police office complex, marking the start of one of the province’s biggest policing infrastructure upgrades in decades.

Chief of Administration Dr. Philip Mitna will travel to Madang to officiate at the decommissioning ceremony, which clears the way for construction to begin at the end of November.

The redevelopment is the first of three major police projects valued at more than K15 million and funded through the Law and Justice Sector program, with support from the National Planning Department.

Following the decommissioning, work will begin on the reconstruction of the Kusbau Barracks, a project worth K3 million. The barracks was condemned 28 years ago by Madang Town Authority health inspectors, who ruled the houses unsafe and unsuitable for human habitation. Its rebuild marks a long-awaited correction to decades of infrastructure neglect.

The third project involves the construction of a K5 million mobile police barracks at Asuar on the South Coast, intended to strengthen rapid deployment and operational readiness across the province.

Provincial Police Commander Superintendent Robert Baim said officers have already begun vacating the old station to prepare for demolition. The prosecutions unit and CID officers have been moved to an alternative building, while the public safety desk will operate temporarily from the training cell.

"The redevelopment of the iconic Madang Town Police Station is critical as it will help address the aging infrastructures that we have," he said. "It is aimed at addressing and improving operational efficiency, safety, and community policing capabilities. Work will include securing and reviving the old cell block."

Baim added that the project will also involve securing and restoring the old cell block.

During construction, a temporary office complex will be set up at Jomba Police Station to host the PPC’s office and administrative staff.

Superintendent Baim thanked Police Commissioner David Manning and the RPNGC executive management for prioritizing Madang in national infrastructure distributions.

"I sincerely appreciate our commissioner who has fairly distributed projects nationwide. The Town Police Station is an icon building for Madang. It was built during the colonial days but has to go in order to meet changes within the Royal PNG Constabulary as well as international standards," he said.