Schram appeal dismissed

By TREVOR WAHUNE
A COURT has dismissed an application by Dr Albert Schram, pictured, for a judicial review of his termination by the University of Technology because he is yet to fully exhaust all administrative avenues.
Justice Leka Nablu yesterday at the National Court in Waigani also discharged interim restraining orders granted earlier against Unitech from implementing the council’s decision on Jan 15 to terminate Schram as vice-chancellor.
It means that the Unitech administration can now go ahead and terminate Schram’s contract as it had decided before.
Justice Nablu explained that Schram’s contract came under company law. Had it been under public law, a judicial review of the decision on his termination would have been guaranteed.
The difference is that public law allows for public servants to seek judicial review so they could seek to be either reinstated given that they serve public offices, or claim damages for breach of contract.
Company law, however, does not allow workers to be reinstated because the offices they hold serve the interest of the company.
Justice Nablu told the court that the PNG University of Technology Act stated that it was a body corporate. It also provided that the school council and other authorities dealt with such issues.
Lawyer Christopher Karaiye representing Unitech and the State told The National that his clients
were now at liberty to implement the termination of Schram’s employment.
“The interim restraining orders restraining my clients from effecting the termination has been discharged. Hence it is up to the PNG Unitech administration to give effect to the council’s decision to terminate Dr Schram’s employment,” Karaiye said.
But Schram’s lawyer, Emmanuel Isaac, told The National that his client had the option of appealing the decision in the Supreme Court, or commencing fresh proceedings through other originating processes.