Former vice-chancellor to face trial on fraud charges

By ROSELYN ELLISON
THE Kokopo Committal Court in East New Britain has found sufficient evidence against former University of Natural Resources and Environment (UNRE) vice-chancellor Dr Philip Siaguru to commit him for trial on abuse of office and misappropriation charges.
Siaguru is facing 12 counts of abuse of office and misappropriating more than K40 million of public funds. He will appear in the National Court for trial on Monday. His bail was extended with varied conditions.
He has to report to the assistant registrar at the Kokopo National Court each Wednesday between 8am and 4pm.
The defendant is not to interfere with state witnesses and or travel out of ENB without the court’s permission.
Siaguru, 56, is from Kwapun village in Wewak, East Sepik, and was vice-chancellor of the university from 2005 to 2015. It was alleged that the defendant on Nov 6, 2009, at Vudal in ENB as UNRE VC chaired a tender committee called the PNG UNRE Tenders Board and awarded a contract valued at K4mil to a company named as AP Engineering Ltd.
The court also heard that on Oct 11, 2010 Siaguru awarded K800,000 to the same company (AP Engineering Ltd). Also on Nov 6, 2009, he allegedly awarded another K3mil to the same company.
It was also alleged that on June 17, 2011, Siaguru again awarded K1.3mil to the engineering company.
The court went on to hear that on Oct 26, 2011, the defendant awarded a contract amounting to K3.5mil to AP Engineering Ltd.
He allegedly repeated the offences on March 1, 2012 (K1.5mil), Nov 19, 2012 K1.6mil), Aug 7, 2012 K2.6mil,
Sept 24, 2012 K16mil, March 10, 2014 K2.15mil, June 23, 2014 K1.55mil and Aug 25, 2014 K1.55m – all the tenders going to the same engineering company.