NCD Metropolitan Superintendent Silva Sika said, police operations in the city will be on heightened alert from today onwards after rumours of a planned protest march began circulating.
The Met-Supt said, the police will not allow this public demonstration, especially at this time when world leaders are coming into the country for their summit.
He said any disturbances by a minority group in NCD would be a major embarrassment to the whole nation in the eyes of the international community.
Mr Sika said a letter from a group calling themselves the Coalition of Concerned Citizens was delivered to his office today, requesting police to grant approval for the planned protest march.
The organisers of this event are using social media to persuade city residents to form up at the Pacific Institute of Leadership and Governance Institute in Waigani today.
“They intend to walk from there to parliament house,” Supt Sika said.
The Met-Supt said the request is not approved because the world’s attention is now focused on PNG.
“We also took into consideration the social impact on the community,” the Met-Supt said.
The business community may suffer losses, and children’s education may be disrupted by this event.
The Met-Supt said the people aggrieved by comments made by Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko can take their grievances to court and seek redress or write and petition the government without a public assembly.
Mr Sika said police will continue to work closely with the community to ensure that peace and good order is maintained across the city.
