**** Joint Statement from the Governors of Enga and Southern Highlands Provinces ****

Enga Province Governor Sir Peter Ipatas and Southern Highlands Province Governor William Powi have called for calm and unity amongst their people following the death of a student on the UNITECH campus overnight.

The Governors have warned all parties not to take the law into their own hands and for all families and relatives to be calm and let police conduct their investigations.

“There was a tragic event overnight and a young man is dead,” the Governors said.

“This barbaric act of violence will not be tolerated and we must all work together to calm tensions.

“This act is not the way of our culture.

“There must be no retaliation and people must be calm.

“Suspected culprits have been identified and their details are now with police to conduct their investigations.

“This is no longer a student issue, but is a matter of law and order and people acting illegally will be dealt with by police.”

The Governors said the country has to move on from events of recent weeks where student issues have been hijacked by people who have political agendas.

“Over recent months we have seen concerning attempts to use students to influence national politics and this is a new low for the people involved.

“Leave the students out of politics and just let them get on with their studies.”