Today’s news that after 6 months in September the case against me for “false pretence” was finally thrown out for lack of any evidence, produced in me mixed feelings.
On the one hand, it is good that finally the general public knows the truth, what we knew all along. On the other hand, I am put again in a no-win situation, unable to prove my innocence after being falsely accused, wrongfully dismissed, maliciously prosecuted and unlawfully detained, as I explained earlier.
Now my case has been finally dismissed for lack of any evidence, confirming that it was a politically motivated withhunt by people who never want the country to emerge from its traditions of chief killing and tribal fighting. The purpose was revenge by financially ruining me, and I must admit this objective has been achieved.
Never mind any further accusations, newly minted allegations or new threats, which part of "case dismissed" exactly is unclear? Rightly the PNG judges do not want to waste any more time for a case for which in 6 years after the first false accusations were made, not a shred of evidence has been presented. The headline leaves no place for doubt.
We have been through this before. Since the official investigation led by former supreme court judge the late Mark Sevua cleared me of all accusations in 2013, the case now being dismissed should not come as a surprise. In fact, in 2014 apologies were made, and I returned to exercise my role as Vice Chancellor in April 2014. Disappointingly, in 2018 the “false pretence” accusation was the same even in the wording, as the one concocted in 2012 to keep me out of the country for 14 months.
The accusations are all madness. Apparently, in Papua New Guinea somebody can come out of the woodwork and start making wild accusations, and part of the police force and the magistrates will play along, for a price.
In fact, it was the infamous con-man Narayan Gehlot who put together a file of trumped up allegations in my regard and distributed it widely. Some gullible council members still seem to believe "there must be some truth in it", despite having evidence to the contrary. A lie does not become true, the more you repeat it. Even a big lie (German: große Lüge) an expression coined by Adolf Hitler, which is a lie so enoermous that no one would believe that someone could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously.
As the attentive readers of my blog already know, the judge in the National Court ruled on 22 May 2018 that the police had not produced any primary evidence to warrant my arrest. He stated in fact there was overwhelming evidence I did in fact have a doctoral degree, as you can see yourself in the official record of my PhD thesis defense, and the publication of my book with Cambridge University Press, the oldest and largest university press in the world. These sources can not be falsified.
In his verdict on 22 May 2018, the National Court judge blasted the police and the complainant Ralph Saulep, and wrote in his judgement: "In spite of this overwhelming evidence (presented by Dr. Schram) Mr. Saulep continues to dispute the authenticity of the applicant's doctorate degree. I find this ridiculous and difficult to fathom especially when neither he or the police are in receipt of evidence from the European University Institute in Florence Italy, confirming their allegations and suspicions". The judge continued: "The current charge, with respect, lacks the primary evidence to prove the elements of falsity. Whether they will have such evidence by the 12th of June 2018 (the next hearing) is anyone's guess. The reality is that they have failed to do so when the allegations were raised in 2012". What is most astounding is that Council or the lawyers never even attempted to contact the European University Institute in Florence directly, although its working language is English. One email or one phone call would have been enough.
In June 2018, the judge granted me bail as a way of getting out of the impasse, and save the police and accuser's (Ralph Saulep) face. After me departure from my hostage situation, I have never been so happy to arrive in Singapore in my life.
Upon arriving in Europe, at my own expense, I traveled to the University Institute in Florence (Italy) that conferred my doctoral degree. They started the legalization procedure and because PNG is not part of the international "apostille convention", the PNG Embassy in Brussels was in charge of forwarding the document to the court. At my own expense, I traveled to Brussels some 1000 km from.my home, where I received a promise that this would be done. Regrettably, the document never arrived at the court. You just can not win, can you, when you are up against a corrupt system.
Frankly, I feel it is time now for Papua New Guineans spend some time and resources in order to create rule-based, democratic and inclusive institutions and universities, if they want those. These days, the government is trying to control the universities directly, an enterprise that is bound to fail in the long run, but in the process creating untold damage to these valuable institutions, necessary to keep PNG a vibrant democracy.
At the moment, I really do not have the resources or the time now to return to PNG and engage another lawyer to remove my bail conditions. This should in fact be automatic, if no evidence has been presented to warrant an arrest in the first place.
In my fight against corruption, I already lost most of my small inheritance in 2013, while forced to live in Australia. In 2017, I lost all the money I thought I had saved due to backpay: half of it Council took for no reason, and the other half I had to pay in legal and hotel expenses while being held against my will on a tourist visa in Port Moresby.
Regrettably, at the University the mismanagement started again as soon as I was sidelined in November 2017. The senior staff continues to pay itself 15% travel allowance, which they know is illegal since December 2017. They also know I was "grossly underpaid", in the words of the consultant, and was owed a substantial amount of backpay. In December 2017 finally the calculations were done. Council however found excuses to pay only half of this backpay, which I accepted. What change everything however is their collusion with shady lawyers, who revived the 2012 false accusations about false pretence.
It pains me to see how my hard work during 6 years to restore the reputation and credibility of UNITECH both nationally and internationally was destroyed. There will be no more support from Australia, New Zealand or India for this university. Internationalization has stopped now, and it has turned into a sort of village university. We were able to get visiting lecturers from India, Australia and even Europe, but there will be no more visiting lecturers now from any these countries. The hiring of unqualified or dishonest academics has started again, since nobody in their right mind would apply in a country where false accusations are taken at face value.
It took us so long to set UNITECH on a positive course, but in the end the forces of darkness prevailed again. It does not paint a good picture of the country or the University of Technology Council. One honest former Council member told me the truth: “Albert there was nothing we could do to stop it, it was all orchestrated in Waigani”. So there you have it.
There is also the matter of me rebuking the Chinese when they were trying to pervert the Council approved process for campus development in the Masterplan. Evidently, this displease some Minister who allegedly have a vested interest in making deals with the Chinese.
As to the internal forces, the dishonest Registrar was lying about never receiving the original of my legalized doctorate in 2015, because she wanted to save her own job. The dishonest Deputy VC was trying to get the VC's job, with the support of his uncle Puka Temu, the famously ineffective Minister of Health.
On the one hand, it is good that finally the general public knows the truth, what we knew all along. On the other hand, I am put again in a no-win situation, unable to prove my innocence after being falsely accused, wrongfully dismissed, maliciously prosecuted and unlawfully detained, as I explained earlier.
Now my case has been finally dismissed for lack of any evidence, confirming that it was a politically motivated withhunt by people who never want the country to emerge from its traditions of chief killing and tribal fighting. The purpose was revenge by financially ruining me, and I must admit this objective has been achieved.
Never mind any further accusations, newly minted allegations or new threats, which part of "case dismissed" exactly is unclear? Rightly the PNG judges do not want to waste any more time for a case for which in 6 years after the first false accusations were made, not a shred of evidence has been presented. The headline leaves no place for doubt.
Manifestly Innocent but Falsely Accused
For no reason whatsoever, I was robbed of the opportunity to exercise the last 2 years of my second mandate as Vice Chancellor in order to achieve the transformation of the PNG University of Technology (UNITECH), into a positive learning community embodying core higher education values, just because a few people wish to hold on to their jobs, perks and privileges at all costs. |
| Today's article in Loop PNG |
We have been through this before. Since the official investigation led by former supreme court judge the late Mark Sevua cleared me of all accusations in 2013, the case now being dismissed should not come as a surprise. In fact, in 2014 apologies were made, and I returned to exercise my role as Vice Chancellor in April 2014. Disappointingly, in 2018 the “false pretence” accusation was the same even in the wording, as the one concocted in 2012 to keep me out of the country for 14 months.
 |
| Reporting on Results of Sevua Investigation |
 |
| Triumphant return on 4 April 2014 after being cleared of all charges |
The accusations are all madness. Apparently, in Papua New Guinea somebody can come out of the woodwork and start making wild accusations, and part of the police force and the magistrates will play along, for a price.
In fact, it was the infamous con-man Narayan Gehlot who put together a file of trumped up allegations in my regard and distributed it widely. Some gullible council members still seem to believe "there must be some truth in it", despite having evidence to the contrary. A lie does not become true, the more you repeat it. Even a big lie (German: große Lüge) an expression coined by Adolf Hitler, which is a lie so enoermous that no one would believe that someone could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously.
As the attentive readers of my blog already know, the judge in the National Court ruled on 22 May 2018 that the police had not produced any primary evidence to warrant my arrest. He stated in fact there was overwhelming evidence I did in fact have a doctoral degree, as you can see yourself in the official record of my PhD thesis defense, and the publication of my book with Cambridge University Press, the oldest and largest university press in the world. These sources can not be falsified.
In his verdict on 22 May 2018, the National Court judge blasted the police and the complainant Ralph Saulep, and wrote in his judgement: "In spite of this overwhelming evidence (presented by Dr. Schram) Mr. Saulep continues to dispute the authenticity of the applicant's doctorate degree. I find this ridiculous and difficult to fathom especially when neither he or the police are in receipt of evidence from the European University Institute in Florence Italy, confirming their allegations and suspicions". The judge continued: "The current charge, with respect, lacks the primary evidence to prove the elements of falsity. Whether they will have such evidence by the 12th of June 2018 (the next hearing) is anyone's guess. The reality is that they have failed to do so when the allegations were raised in 2012". What is most astounding is that Council or the lawyers never even attempted to contact the European University Institute in Florence directly, although its working language is English. One email or one phone call would have been enough.
In June 2018, the judge granted me bail as a way of getting out of the impasse, and save the police and accuser's (Ralph Saulep) face. After me departure from my hostage situation, I have never been so happy to arrive in Singapore in my life.
Although in a state of law anybody is innocent until proven guilty, and therefore I had no obligation to prove my innocence, I nevertheless undertook to do this. After being released, I did everything I could and spared no expense to prove my innocence, but again I was put again in a no-win situation due to obstruction of the PNG authorities.
 |
| Visiting European University Institute on 10 July 2018 to legalize my doctorate |
Upon arriving in Europe, at my own expense, I traveled to the University Institute in Florence (Italy) that conferred my doctoral degree. They started the legalization procedure and because PNG is not part of the international "apostille convention", the PNG Embassy in Brussels was in charge of forwarding the document to the court. At my own expense, I traveled to Brussels some 1000 km from.my home, where I received a promise that this would be done. Regrettably, the document never arrived at the court. You just can not win, can you, when you are up against a corrupt system.
 |
| Visiting PNG Embassy in Brussels on 20 July 2018 to make arrangement for sending of documents, that never arrived |
Rule of Law in PNG?
Frankly, I feel it is time now for Papua New Guineans spend some time and resources in order to create rule-based, democratic and inclusive institutions and universities, if they want those. These days, the government is trying to control the universities directly, an enterprise that is bound to fail in the long run, but in the process creating untold damage to these valuable institutions, necessary to keep PNG a vibrant democracy.
At the moment, I really do not have the resources or the time now to return to PNG and engage another lawyer to remove my bail conditions. This should in fact be automatic, if no evidence has been presented to warrant an arrest in the first place.
In my fight against corruption, I already lost most of my small inheritance in 2013, while forced to live in Australia. In 2017, I lost all the money I thought I had saved due to backpay: half of it Council took for no reason, and the other half I had to pay in legal and hotel expenses while being held against my will on a tourist visa in Port Moresby.
Regrettably, at the University the mismanagement started again as soon as I was sidelined in November 2017. The senior staff continues to pay itself 15% travel allowance, which they know is illegal since December 2017. They also know I was "grossly underpaid", in the words of the consultant, and was owed a substantial amount of backpay. In December 2017 finally the calculations were done. Council however found excuses to pay only half of this backpay, which I accepted. What change everything however is their collusion with shady lawyers, who revived the 2012 false accusations about false pretence.
It pains me to see how my hard work during 6 years to restore the reputation and credibility of UNITECH both nationally and internationally was destroyed. There will be no more support from Australia, New Zealand or India for this university. Internationalization has stopped now, and it has turned into a sort of village university. We were able to get visiting lecturers from India, Australia and even Europe, but there will be no more visiting lecturers now from any these countries. The hiring of unqualified or dishonest academics has started again, since nobody in their right mind would apply in a country where false accusations are taken at face value.
It took us so long to set UNITECH on a positive course, but in the end the forces of darkness prevailed again. It does not paint a good picture of the country or the University of Technology Council. One honest former Council member told me the truth: “Albert there was nothing we could do to stop it, it was all orchestrated in Waigani”. So there you have it.
Why?
So why all this madness? There were obviously powerful external and internal forces at play. Ralph Saulep, the main accuser and enforcer for Peter O'Neill and his criminal friends, still hopes that in the confusion he will eventually be appointed Chancellor, a role he has always felt entitled to, and nobody wants him take up. In fact, when he got his front page, the students burned the newspapers in anger. In my regard, he acted out of anger, spite and revenge, in collusion with the current lawyers of Council. |
| Saulep's front page: in his wildest dreams |
 |
| Students burning the newspaper with Ralph Saulep's front page (28 March 2014) |
There is also the matter of me rebuking the Chinese when they were trying to pervert the Council approved process for campus development in the Masterplan. Evidently, this displease some Minister who allegedly have a vested interest in making deals with the Chinese.
As to the internal forces, the dishonest Registrar was lying about never receiving the original of my legalized doctorate in 2015, because she wanted to save her own job. The dishonest Deputy VC was trying to get the VC's job, with the support of his uncle Puka Temu, the famously ineffective Minister of Health.
The rest of the staff fell in line out of fear, or because they new I would take away the 15% travel allowance they had been paying themselves illegally. There was also staunch resistance to any change or restructuring, and dishonest employees caught stealing by the internal audot unit were reinstated by Council. The illegality of this allowance, which I had always resisted, was finally established in December 2017, but is still being paid now more than one year later.
In all, the PNG University of Technology reverted to its original state, and can still best be described as a joint criminal enterprise with the purpose of mismanaging public funds. (For those who believe I am exaggerating on 13 February 2021, an article in the Guardian was published highlighting how a PNG UoT Council member had deep links with Sydney based mafia and international terrorism. It took me a great effort to have him removed.)
In all, the PNG University of Technology reverted to its original state, and can still best be described as a joint criminal enterprise with the purpose of mismanaging public funds. (For those who believe I am exaggerating on 13 February 2021, an article in the Guardian was published highlighting how a PNG UoT Council member had deep links with Sydney based mafia and international terrorism. It took me a great effort to have him removed.)
Meanwhile, today the University still has no Vice Chancellor, there is still no Student Representative Council, and the continuity of operations and teaching has come into question because the student dining hall has been dismantled, and the bill for satellite internet has not been paid for months.
After the firing of hundreds of life rounds at the peacefully protesting students on the UPNG campus on 8 June 2016, it seems everybody is too scared to speak up. It has never been cleared up who gave the order, and moved these policemen from the highlands to Port Moresby.
Many of our readers have asked how we are doing after this ordeal. Today, I have moved on, and I feel relieved to be freed from those terrible dishonest colleagues, all professed Christians, who unhesitatingly first knowingly falsely accused me, then threw me under the bus, and never again reached out or said or wrote a word to me (with only a few exceptions). These Christians must be experts in betrayal, since Jezus himself was betrayed by his own disciples.
It really pains me we won't be able to see the many good friends we have made in over 6 years living among the good people of Papua New Guinea. I can only come back to the country, if all charges are dropped, all costs and damages that my family and I suffered are reimbursed.
Meanwhile, we live modestly at home in Verona with my mother who is 88 years old and almost died of worry last year. In 2015, we invited one of the UNITECH students who studies in Europe to visit our place, and he was impressed by the peacefulness of the place and friendliness and civility of its people.
My wife has a job in one of the leading high schools teaching English, and I have a modest job as Professor with an American University, teaching management and history university courses on US army basis in Northern Italy.
My continuing academic career makes clear I am not a fraud. My credentials and work experience were rigorously checked before I was appointed, and I had to undergo extensive training to learn their systems and teaching methods. In fact, World Education Services has now legalized my doctorate for the United States, and can send any university a copy. You don't get such a job if you are a fraud, trust me.
I am grateful for the opportunity to have served the PNG University of Technology and its wpnderful students well, during the 2.5 years the Council was not politicized and controlled by the government.
In Italy, I was given this opportunity so soon after returning to teach at this world class institution, and learning about online and hybrid course delivery. Today, we enjoy working with our friendly, competent and helpful colleagues, and my and my wife are both contributing to providing a true education for willing learners. We escaped penniless but with our lives from Papua New Guinea. We could have come back with wonderful stories, but we did not. It could have been so much better for the PNG University of Technology.
Further viewing & reading
Videos 2016
At UPNG police shot life rounds at peacefully protesting students, wounding several, and fortunately killing none. The University closed for the rest of 2016 8 June 2016 UPNG students shooting
http://bit.ly/3755pgX
At UNITECH, I was able to bring the Metropolitan Superintendent Anthony Wagambie Jr on campus to talk with the students, which prevented a riot on 8 June. Later, regrettably the students started to fight among themselves, and one student was seriously wounded, and one killed. Nevertheless, we were able to re-open the University on 31 August 2016.
EMTV UNITECH riot prevented
http://bit.ly/352oiiY
After the firing of hundreds of life rounds at the peacefully protesting students on the UPNG campus on 8 June 2016, it seems everybody is too scared to speak up. It has never been cleared up who gave the order, and moved these policemen from the highlands to Port Moresby.
Gratefully Moving On
Many of our readers have asked how we are doing after this ordeal. Today, I have moved on, and I feel relieved to be freed from those terrible dishonest colleagues, all professed Christians, who unhesitatingly first knowingly falsely accused me, then threw me under the bus, and never again reached out or said or wrote a word to me (with only a few exceptions). These Christians must be experts in betrayal, since Jezus himself was betrayed by his own disciples.
It really pains me we won't be able to see the many good friends we have made in over 6 years living among the good people of Papua New Guinea. I can only come back to the country, if all charges are dropped, all costs and damages that my family and I suffered are reimbursed.
Meanwhile, we live modestly at home in Verona with my mother who is 88 years old and almost died of worry last year. In 2015, we invited one of the UNITECH students who studies in Europe to visit our place, and he was impressed by the peacefulness of the place and friendliness and civility of its people.
My wife has a job in one of the leading high schools teaching English, and I have a modest job as Professor with an American University, teaching management and history university courses on US army basis in Northern Italy.
My continuing academic career makes clear I am not a fraud. My credentials and work experience were rigorously checked before I was appointed, and I had to undergo extensive training to learn their systems and teaching methods. In fact, World Education Services has now legalized my doctorate for the United States, and can send any university a copy. You don't get such a job if you are a fraud, trust me.
 |
| Official Report Legalizing my Doctorate for the USA |
 |
| First paragraph of my contract with the University of Maryland University College (privacy protected) |
In Italy, I was given this opportunity so soon after returning to teach at this world class institution, and learning about online and hybrid course delivery. Today, we enjoy working with our friendly, competent and helpful colleagues, and my and my wife are both contributing to providing a true education for willing learners. We escaped penniless but with our lives from Papua New Guinea. We could have come back with wonderful stories, but we did not. It could have been so much better for the PNG University of Technology.
 |
| The Spirit of 2014 Has Disappeared after the Students' Shooting on 8 June 2016 |
Further viewing & reading
Videos 2016At UPNG police shot life rounds at peacefully protesting students, wounding several, and fortunately killing none. The University closed for the rest of 2016 8 June 2016 UPNG students shooting
http://bit.ly/3755pgX
At UNITECH, I was able to bring the Metropolitan Superintendent Anthony Wagambie Jr on campus to talk with the students, which prevented a riot on 8 June. Later, regrettably the students started to fight among themselves, and one student was seriously wounded, and one killed. Nevertheless, we were able to re-open the University on 31 August 2016.
EMTV UNITECH riot prevented
http://bit.ly/352oiiY
2021
The Guardian, Lasslett, K., & Doherty, B. (2021). 'Too good to be true': the deal with an Isis-linked Australian family that betrayed PNG's most marginalised. the Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/13/too-good-to-be-true-the-deal-with-an-isis-linked-australian-family-that-betrayed-pngs-most-marginalised
2019
How Peter O’Neill screwed PNG’s universities. (2019, November 14). Retrieved from https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/how-peter-oneill-screwed-pngs-universities.html
2018
ABC Radio Interview: demanding answers for students' shooting on 8 June 2016
Times Higher Education article 1
Times Higher Education article 2
Times Higher Education article 3
The Australian 1 (paywall)
The Australian 2 (paywall)
Australian National University blog 1
Australian National University blog 2
Earlier
Minister Arore promising investment that never came
Dr. Schram's ANU lecture on failed university reform in PNG
The Guardian, Lasslett, K., & Doherty, B. (2021). 'Too good to be true': the deal with an Isis-linked Australian family that betrayed PNG's most marginalised. the Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/13/too-good-to-be-true-the-deal-with-an-isis-linked-australian-family-that-betrayed-pngs-most-marginalised
2019
How Peter O’Neill screwed PNG’s universities. (2019, November 14). Retrieved from https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/how-peter-oneill-screwed-pngs-universities.html
2018
ABC Radio Interview: demanding answers for students' shooting on 8 June 2016
Times Higher Education article 1
Times Higher Education article 2
Times Higher Education article 3
The Australian 1 (paywall)
The Australian 2 (paywall)
Australian National University blog 1
Australian National University blog 2
Earlier
Minister Arore promising investment that never came
Dr. Schram's ANU lecture on failed university reform in PNG
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