Hela first to fund SSD training from its provincial government budget

The Hela Provincial Government has funded the Hela-based Mobile Squad with their training program at the McGregor Mobile Squad base in Port Moresby, which passed out early this week.

According to Deputy Director of the Mobile Squad Directorate at McGregor, Chief Superintendent Florien Luvi, the Hela Provincial Government is one of the first provincial governments that is stepping forward to fund training for the mobile squad based in their province. He said the police officers need training, and it was a timely help for the officers to undergo such training.

While acknowledging the monetary support provided by the Hela Provincial Government, he also challenged the other provinces to do the same for the respective Mobile Squad Units in their provinces.

"After this training, police officers will be based in their respective provinces to provide policing services to the people of those provinces," he said.

The Executive Officer of the Hela Provincial Government, Amos Libe, who spoke on behalf of the Hela Provincial Government leaders and the people of Hela, thanked the McGregor Mobile Squad base for training the Hela-based Mobile Squad officers, which is now a bonus for them as they move forward to fight law and order in the province.

Libe said that apart from the training, the Hela Provincial Government had also supported the police in the province by building new houses, of which thirty-two will be opened next week when the officers return home.

"Ten police vehicles have been purchased by the Hela Provincial Government and are ready to be presented to the police when they open the new houses and welcome the MS09 members back to the province. The remaining balance of the 100 houses are still under construction and will soon be completed," he said.

Libe added that Hela Province is serious about law-and-order problems and that is how they are providing money to support the police officers in the province.

He said the Provincial Government had funded the training with more than half a million, which includes the training and other necessary gear that the police officers need to do their job.

On behalf of the Hela Provincial Government, Libe thanked Police Commissioner David Manning and his management for approving their request to train the police officers.

He said the police officers will not only serve Hela but the whole of PNG when they are called to go to other provinces. He also thanked the PNGDF officers at Goldie who assisted in the training.