He also thanked the parents of the students and MPs who "sponsored their student academic year for acting in a mature way" by not participating.

"Let me express our sympathies to the students and some members of the public, who received injuries during the confrontation between the police and some of our students on Wednesday at UPNG," he said.

"It has come to light that this confrontation was unnecessary, it could have been handled a bit better by of course not allowing this sort of confrontation to take place," he said.

"Since the concerns of the students were raised to government, government has responded in a very responsible manner, in a very detailed manner to the students.

"Unfortunately, there are certain elements within the student group influenced by outsiders, obviously with their self-interest, particularly political interest, who have been visiting students on many occasions, who have engaged with students on many occasions, have encouraged them to participate in this event that has led to the confrontation yesterday," he said.

"It is regrettable, and of course we do not condone that. We appeal to the parents and of course the public at large for acting in a mature way."