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Justice must be seen to be done THERE has been so much of bad news around in recent days it has been quite disconcerting.But I have nevertheless decided to follow up on my general comments last week on the issue and importance of transparency in government and the private sector. By the nature of their work, people in high places usually prefer to work quietly and behind the scenes without too much scrutiny or attention. They often explain that much more will be achieved this way. There is some truth in this but, as a functioning democracy that is not producing the fruits of development for the wider populace, I always like to keep in mind the dictum that it is not good enough for justice to be done, it has to be seen to be done. We know that corruption is a big and possibly growing problem and so it is with the precursor to corruption, the lack of transparency and accountability. Some recent happenings in this regard are almost depressing. Even our main universities seem to hide their light under a bushel, despite often proclaiming their claimed transparency. Just over a week ago The National carried an advertisement from the University of Papua New Guinea, very aptly titled: Clarification of unauthorised use of information. In it, the Vice-Chancellor Ross Hynes expressed “regret” that The National had made “unauthorised and inappropriate use of information” regarding the number of scholarships awarded to ongoing UPNG students in 2007 and 2008. Despite this expression of regret, Prof Hynes admitted that the key thrust of the article that there were 440 less scholarships awarded this year was accurate, although the newspaper had mentioned a figure of 443. The public presumably were being advised via this advertisement that The National had done something “inappropriate” because neither UPNG nor the Office of Higher Education had officially released any such information. Looked at another way, this effectively showed their lack of transparency. Until today this issue has not been fully clarified. Top executives of the OHE have appeared on Government Talkback radio and basically suggested it was up to UPNG to prove that funding for scholarships had been cut. The original report in The National had suggested the cuts had occurred because OHE had overspent its 2007 budget by K900,000. The OHE has neither confirmed nor denied this suggestion. Why is a newspaper like The National interested in publishing such “inappropriate” information? Basically one could say this is a matter of great public interest and the public certainly has a right to know what is going on because it is the nation’s taxpayers that fund both UPNG and OHE. Just as these developments were taking place even more dramatic events engulfed the nation’s premier technological training institute, the University of Technology in Lae. Unitech is facing crises at a number of levels, particularly with the departure of many qualified lecturers that has placed some courses in jeopardy. This is certainly not a problem that has occurred overnight but one that has certainly been nurtured by a lack of transparency at Unitech and at the OHE, which also has had to cope with other problems revolving around perceived unfairness in the way places have been allocated to successful Higher School Certificate students. Some of the students with the best results have failed to get places at tertiary institutions, a matter of grave concern to themselves, their parents and the wider community. There appears little hope that the situation will be clarified quickly because some of these matters are now before the courts. Isn’t it depressing to think that transparency and accountability are severely lacking in our higher education institutions, where the cream of the nation’s future leadership is being trained? But all is probably not lost because superannuation companies such as Nasfund and Nambawan Super are blazing a path towards a level of transparency and accountability that will never be achieved by most other Government and non-government organisations. At least there are shining examples of what can be achieved in this country. If you don’t believe this bold statement just take a look at the information that is available on www.nasfund.com.pg. Not too long ago Nasfund – then more popularly known as NPF – was one of the worst-run and most corrupt public organisations one could find, but legislative changes implemented by the former Mekere Government almost eight years ago has made a big difference. Boards and managers of these funds have been made more transparent and accountable in the process. Nasfund’s sterling performances, and the handsome returns made into private sector employee retirement savings accounts over the past five years, have been directly due to these reforms. There are significant transparency issues revolving around most Government departments and quasi-government bodies, but transparency alone is certainly not enough to ensure good governance and good outcomes. Bottom Line believes that over the several years of its existence this column has explored a variety of topics from many viewpoints and most have been well received by a wide readership around the country. The time is nearing when this column should enjoy a graceful exit. But before the final say, which could be some time away, I would like to invite anyone willing, or wanting to do so, to communicate subjects they might like to see further discussed or to challenge some of these assertions made over the years. Email to briangomez@thenational.com.pg
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