11/11/2025
Good Day to everyone.Inlight of the recent incident that transpired in UOG,my sincererest sympathies to the students as well as the locals that have circumed injuries during the confrontation.
Properties have been destroyed, school has been closed, locals house burnt to the ground, all this because of few bad apples in the community.
I am a Southern Highlander that came and settled in Goroko with my parents back in 2000s,did my primary and secondary School in Goroka.
Goroka is home to a lot of us upper highlanders. We coexist peacefully for many decades, I personally call Goroka my home. School holidays i go back to Goroka as my home.
Goroka is known to Papua New Guinea as one of the most peaceful Towns to live and raise a family.
Goroka is a peaceful place, the people there are the most peaceful people and its just very unfortunate that such incident happened that portrait Goroka has a dangerous place.
However, what happened has happened, we all cannot change what happened but we can always protect the future of the University and its students from these sort of issues to transpire again.
Police and the relevant authorities should come down hard on the real culprits that instigated these issues, prosecute them and show the country that Goroka is still a peaceful town and home to many of us Upper highlanders and Papua New Guineans as a whole. Community leaders should show full support to the law, apprehend the culprits and formally apologise to the Student body, the staff and the students parents and guardians. Do it the “ APO WAY”, the peaceful way.
The country needs unity now more than ever. We just turned 50years,we cannot be fighting amongst ourselves and disrespecting our students. Students are the future of this great nation of ours.
May God give wisdom and understanding to our Leaders, both national and local leaders to carefully and peacefully settle these issues and may God grant peace to our UOG students and our staffs.
Thank you.
