How do I turn off the ability for customers to add a Public Comment?

How do I turn off the ability for customers to add a Public Comment?

I for one do not use this feature at all.  i have a select few customers that use the Portal to add to their ticket, and every once in a while, they post a reply to a ticket as a Comment.

When a comment is posted, I get a push notification on my phone but I do not get an email.  The comment is lost for me because of that.

I wish to completely disable this feature, even for me.  I just don't use it.  Is there a way to at least disable it for customers??