The Papua New Guinea Government has been told the police force needs a funding injection of up to 750 million US dollars to bring it to a level where it can do its job.
The Police Commissioner, Gari Baki recently, told the Ministerial Committee on Law and Order what is needed if the force is to function properly.
The National newspaper reports that Government officials say the Government simply does not have that kind of money, and any assistance would be piecemeal.
An official is quoted saying the situation painted by Commissioner Baki is very grave and they hope money can be found somewhere because the police force has to function properly to ensure a sound climate for the big resource projects coming up.
Police needs 25 million US to renovate the 300 police stations nationwide, but the Government allocates only 200 thousand dollars each year for maintenance of all police buildings.
The 4,000 police houses nationwide require about 150 million US to be rehabilitated but only 20 million was given in a supplementary budget 3 years ago.
The police force also needs to boost numbers by several thousand officers.
