24/02/2014

Papua New Guinea Blogs: Reasons why students want Albert Shram back.

(I feel humbled. These points will be a guideline for the future for me. AS)

Original: Papua New Guinea Blogs: Reasons why students want Albert Shram back.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Reasons why students want Albert Shram back.

By SAMUEL MAGIRI

Dr. Albert Schram (Shram in Pidgin)
Hardly any talented European comes to our university and we struggled for more than a year to bring back damn good VC Albert Shram. Today Unitech is a dark room with no air movement only Shram can unlock this place and make it move again.

1. Government made a mediation report in 2012 and Sevua report in 2013 and nothing was found wrong with Shram.

From Papua New Guinea Today: Duma Sacked (and David Arore as well)

(Finally, we have a new Minister of Higher Education, Hon. Delilah Gore MP. Progress for UNITECH is now again possible. We are looking forward working with her. Let's see what she does. AS)

Original: Duma Sacked | Papua New Guinea Today

Hon. Julie Bishop MP (Australian Minister Foreign Affairs) and
Hon. Delilah Gore, appointed PNG Minister of Higher Education on 24 February 2014.


PNG cabinet has sacked minister for Petroleum and Energy William Duma in a mini ministerial reshuffle today. Minister Duma is the Party leader of the United Resources Party. Madang MP Nixon Duban has been appointed as the Minister of Petroleum and Energy.


The cabinet has also replaced Minister for Higher Education, Science and Technology David Arore. Sohe MP Delilah Gore is the new minister for Higher Education, Science and Technology. 

21/02/2014

Polin Asked to Resign After Calling on Schram’s Return - EM TV

Original: Polun Asked to Resign After Calling on Schram’s Return - EM TV

on Friday, 21 February 2014. Posted in News
BY: SCOTT WAIDE


Ken Polin, UNITECH Staff member
Three weeks into the first term of the school year, and fresh calls are being made for the return of Dr. Albert Schram, as Vice Chancellor of the University of Technology.

But a staff member, who held a public forum on Monday, has been asked to resign, despite echoing public views shared by the Universities administration and Student Representative Council.
Ken Polun, who heads the university’s maintenance division, held the public forum citing newspaper reports that stated Schram had been cleared in the investigation led by former judge, Mark Sevua.

He was later stopped by security and asked to resign by the university administration.

17/02/2014

Confusion of Confusions

Here is the "Confusion of confusions", overheard these days at UNITECH by our friends. Allow me to clear up these matters, before these untruthful stories take hold in the people's minds.

First confusion: "The VC deserves to be dismissed because he has been critical of David Arore mismanagement of the UNITECH saga on his FB page." This is typical a case of blaming the victim.



07/02/2014

Remember this? Upgrading ICT Facilities at State Universities - from Education News PNG

Original: Upgrading ICT Facilities at State Universities - Education News PNG

Upgrading ICT Facilities at State Universities
By Bernard Sinai on June 17, 2013



Treasurer and acting Minister for HERST, Don Polye

Over the past few months, I have received many appeals from students, academics, and management at our State universities for better facilities to support their learning and teaching.

Their message is that State universities must participate more strongly in educating students and preparing graduates for the 'knowledge society.'

Questions hang over Uni report (The National, 7 February 2014)

(It is over, when the Vice-Chancellor will be on campus. Meanwhile, the Master of Confusion Mr. Saulep will continue. AS)

06/02/2014

UNITECH Council Press Statement

(This was published Tuesday 4 February. Thank you Chancellor, it is quite unequivocal. I have never had a conflict with Council, and I have never been legally dismissed by the now dissolved, former Council.

The conflict is now between Council on the one hand, and the Minister of Higher Education and the Migration authorities on the other hand. Who has been holding this up since June? AS)


04/02/2014

Remember this? Minister's Press Statement on the Outcome of the UNITECH Mediation (12 November 2012)

This press statement was released on 12 November 2012, over 1 year ago, before Minister Arore turned against the Council he himself had appointed, thus prolonging the conflict and promoting instability on campus.

The whole saga could have stopped there and then. The agenda proposed in this press statement indicates what needed to be done at UNITECH:
  • Rehabilitate the internal bookkeeping system
  • Drastically improve ICT and IT networks for staff members and students
  • Undertake Institutional and Program audit (particularly in the engineering disciplines)
  • Commence the process of ensuring academic programs such as engineering are accredited to the Washington Accord
  • Undertake with OHE a salary review for staff
  • Adopt immediate strategies to reduce the current accumulative debt of K36 Million, and
  • Investigate claims of fraudulent and criminal practices that may or may not have occurred over the years.


03/02/2014

Remember this? University funding boost to cater for increased students - University World News 13 July 2013

(Still nothing. Where is the money? AS)

Original: University funding boost to cater for increased students - University World News

The Papua New Guinea government is pouring K500 million (US$222 million) into universities to roll out and upgrade programmes, in order to increase the intake of students coming out of secondary schools, Higher Education, Science and Research Technology Minister David Arore said last week, reports The National.

01/02/2014

"Schram Retains UNITECH Post" from The National (Friday 31 January)

(The general public may believe I have been sacked, but I have in fact never been legally dismissed. My position was endorsed by Council meeting in August and again in December. It is up to the government now to give me my employment visa. They could have done that since June, when the Sevua Investigation cleared my of all silly and baseless allegations. AS)