History repeating itself at Unitech

Unitech’s problems since late last year are similar in nature to what happened at University of Papua New Guinea and University of Goroka during the period 2005-2006.
In both instances, the administrations of the two universities, led by their chancellors and vice-chancellors, were arrogant, autocratic and overbearing in their relations with staff and students.
This led to a poor working relationship between the staff and the administration.
Staff at both universities took industrial action, and this was followed by student strikes in support of the reasons the staff were protesting about.
This led to removal of the administrators and the council members and eventual restoration of order in the two campuses.
The costs involved in the removal and replacing of the administration and council members at the two universities were enormous.
The hours of lectures, tutorials and practicals missed, the enormous amount of stress and anxiety on staff and students, the loss of experienced and committed lecturers like Prof Allan Patience from UPNG, the costs incurred as a result of damage to property especially at UPNG, where several vehicles and a motorcycle were burnt, and legal costs incurred by the outgoing council and administration as in the case of UOG.
In both cases, investigations carried out revealed that the staff and students had genuine concerns regarding mal-administration.
The arrogant and authoritative administration and council members had to go.
As the saying goes “where there is smoke there is a fire”.
As such, after the lessons learnt from UPNG and UOG in the last three years, the Minister for Higher Education should have acted early last year to suspend the Unitech administration and council and institute an investigation just like what Don Polye did to the UOG council in 2006.
The suspended UOG Council took the Minister for Higher Education to court but was unsuccessful in the National Court decision that was handed down.
The Unitech case may be the same in the sense that the minister may have the right to suspend the Unitech administration and council.
I advice the Unitech administration and council members to step down, allow an investigation to proceed and let classes resume without any undue stress and anxiety on staff, students, parents and other stakeholders.
You are only a handful in numbers compared to the many (staff, student, parents and other stakeholders) that are affected.
 

Walhos Che Palisa
UPNG.