THE Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) has praised members of the public in Honiara for the good behaviour shown so far as the 6th Melanesian Arts and Cultural Festival progresses and preparations underway for the 40th independence anniversary celebrations on July 6, 2018.
The RSIPF operation which started last week involves more than 200 officers from Honiara City, Guadalcanal province and several other departments including the Police Response Team (PRT, the Close Personal Protection Unit (CPP), the intel units and the Traffic Department providing security at the various venues of the MACFest and visibility patrols throughout the capital.
“As the overall operations commander, I am very happy with the behaviour of our own people and that of our visitors at the various activities and venues. No major incident has been reported to the police up this morning (July 3),” says Deputy Commissioner, Gabriel Manelusi.
“With the exception of the arrest of several drivers on drunk and driving charges and use of the vehicles with a valid license and driving without a valid driver’s licence, the situation has been peaceful so far with people attending to the activities at the various venues observing the law.
“I want to warn anyone who intends to disturb the festivities and celebrations, that police will adopt a zero tolerance stance and apply the full force of the law against anyone who wants to disturb the peace.
“Let us show the world that exactly one year after the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) left our shores that we are capable of looking after our own security through the cooperation of the community with the RSIPF.
“To our visitors, please feel free to move around our capital Honiara and enjoy the festivities.
“Should you need any assistance, do not hesitate to approach any police officer that you see or drop into any police station and our officers will be too willing to assist you.”
RSIPF will mount a parade at the Lawson Tama Sports Stadium as part of the 40th anniversary of independence celebrations on Friday, July 6, 2018.
–POLICE MEDIA
