Reconstruction and renovation work for dormitories, laboratories, mess and tutorial rooms is currently underway at the University of Papua New Guinea’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

This is following a sit-in protest a week ago by students led by Student’s Representative Council (SRC) representative Elizah Sap demanding the university’s vice-chancellor and medical schoool dean give them answers about their legacy issues.

During a visit to the school on Thursday, Sap gave an update on the status of renovation work.

He said there were short and long-term plans outlined in the petition.

“Short term plans include students to use the mess and eat a decent meal, have access to electricity and see renovation taking place to many of the buildings that are at a
deteriorating state,” he said.

“Long term plans include scoping in terms having wi-fi access to all dormitories, staff houses and others.

“We have been neglected for so long and therefore, we have decided to arrange for a sit-in-protest and we want to thank the UPNG vice-chancellor Professor Frank Griffin for the immediate response after receiving our petition.

Broken doors, windows …
“There are broken doors, windows, no furniture in most of the rooms and there are always electrical faults experienced.

“The mess [dining room] has been closed for almost four years due to the unsanitary practices relating to mass hygiene, until four days ago. It was reopened after a new food warmer was installed with proper power supply and equipment,” Sap said.

The school’s mess needs to be renovated.

Sap said that for the last four years, students’ meals were prepared at the UPNG Waigani campus and delivered to the school. However, many times the food was cold and not fresh to eat when it was delivered and some students fell ill from food poisoning.

“We have also been facing continuous blackouts due to PNG Power’s fluctuation and there is no standby genset as it is no longer working.

“We have received confirmation that by next week Tuesday, two new gensets will be delivered,” he said.

Sit-in protest
Sap said the sit in protest was the reason why work had commenced and the students acknowledged vice-chancellor Griffin for the immediate intervention.

The school has 712 registered students from different study disciplines.

The school was established during the 1960s and was previously known as the Papua Medical College.

Since then, most of the facilities in the school had not been renovated or replaced.

Sap said that the only renovation done to some of the dormitories was between 2021 and 2022.

Grace Salmang is a PNG Post-Courier reporter. Republished with permission.

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The University of Papua New Guinea’s vice-chancellor, Professor Frank Griffin, has assured protesting students of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences that their concerns raised during a sit-in last Friday will be addressed immediately.

He told the students when receiving a seven-page petition containing protests over the student’s welfare which was presented to him by Student Representative Council (SRC) student representative Elizah Sap that he would act “today”.

“I hear your cry — the work does not start next this week but today,” Professor Griffin said.

“I have walked through everyone’s dormitories in this campus, the laboratories and the state of the other buildings and the work starts today.

“I have heard your pleas of the students on the whole concept of from the womb to the tomb, this school handles every part of that.

“It may appear that you are being forgotten and neglected, that is not always the case but what we’ll do now is a priority with work and planning starting immediately,” he said.

He told the students that he would return to the campus to discuss with the school’s executive dean and SRC executives to draw up a plan and get the assessment and work going as quickly as possible.

Wifi, generators ‘a priority’
“The issues of having the wifi and generators is a priority that we will look at immediately,” he said.

He said when the school starts next year, it should be a different place.

He said the medical campus was much older than the main campus in Waigani and for now the university would make sure to make the place “fit enough” to be called the School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

SRC president Sap acknowledged Professor Griffin’s response.

“As such, the SRC considers it vital that the student concerns raised in this petition be addressed adequately and promptly,” Sap sad.

“Importantly as well, the SRC calls on the administration to look into all of these matters with due care and consideration in order to formulate strategies to remedy these concerns.

“Only together can the administration and SRC help the University of Papua New Guinea improve services for its students.”

Republished with permission from the PNG Post-Courier.

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University students in Papua New Guinea are protesting against the signing of a defence cooperation agreement with the United States which is expected to take place today in Port Moresby.

Since 6am this morning, students from universities from around the country have been calling for more transparency from the government.

The student president at the University of Technology in Lae, Kenzie Walipi, said the government must explain exactly what was going to be in the deal ahead of the signing.

“If such an agreement is going to affect us in any way? We have to be made aware,” Walipi said.

“An agreement of this magnitude must go before Parliament. There must be clarity. The people must be made aware of the implications.”

Walipi said they were coordinating protests with student colleagues in other universities around the country.

Students at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) gathered at the Waigani campus.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Frank Griffin said the university administration would facilitate the presentation of a petition to government.

“Our job is not to say whether it [the petition] is in order or not in order. Our job is to actually help them with bringing it through the right processes to the attention of our Prime Minister,” Professor Griffin said.

Deal will ‘enhance security cooperation’ — US
A fact sheet outlining US engagements with Papua New Guinea was released by the US Department of State yesterday. It said:

“On May 22, Secretary [Antony] Blinken will sign a Defense Cooperation Agreement, which, when it enters into force, will serve as a foundational framework upon which our two countries can enhance security cooperation and further strengthen our bilateral relationship, improve the capacity of the PNG Defence Force (PNGDF), and increase stability and security in the region.

“The United States expects to publish the text of the Defense Cooperation Agreement after entry into force, consistent with US law.”

The fact sheet noted the defence cooperation was just one of multiple new initiatives the US was entering into with Papua New Guinea.

“The United States will continue to partner with PNG on strengthening economic relations, security cooperation, and people-to-people ties, as well as promoting inclusive and sustainable development, including through plans to work with Congress to provide over $45 million in new programming,” it said.

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken are expected to sign the agreement today prior to Blinken also meeting with leaders from the 14 other Pacific Islands countries who are in Port Moresby.

Pacific leaders will also be meeting with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who landed in the PNG capital overnight on his way back to India from the G7 summit in Japan.

Monday’s meeting will be the third in-person Pacific-India summit Modi has attended, the other two being in Jaipur, India in 2015 and Suva, Fiji in 2014.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

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Prime Minister James Marape has approved the building of a monument of the late Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare at the University of Papua New Guinea.

During the ground-breaking ceremony on Friday, Marape said the monument would symbolise what the nation’s founding fathers stood for, and the legacy of Sir Michael who was driving the move for independence.

“It is proper to build the late Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare’s monument here at the very highest learning institution of the country,” he said.

“He was a simple teacher, but he rose up in the ranks to become the first Prime Minister.

“I believe this will inspire the next generations of leaders.”

The project will be overseen by the government and Moresby North-West MP Lohia Boe Samuel.

Marape said Sir Michael “stood for so many things in his fight for independence”.

‘Freedom and liberty’
“But one I believe was closest to his heart was to see the next generations of Papua New Guineans have the freedom and liberty to decide the fate of their country,” he said.

“This is the dream we carry today and are heading towards.”

The momument was suggested by the University Students’ Representative Council which started fundraising last year.

“The late Sir Michael was at the prime age of 30 to 37 when he led the call for independence,” former council president Matthew Tinol said.

“That is what we must draw [from] — to be selfless, to be builders of our country, to be visionary and leaders that late Sir Michael needed us to become.”

UPNG vice–chancellor Professor Frank Griffin thanked the government for supporting the students’ council funding of the project with its fundraising last year.

The monument is expected to be completed by September 16 — PNG’s Independence Day — next year.

Nathan Woti is a reporter for The National. Republished with permission.

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The University of PNG has clarified that Papua New Guinea’s higher education loan programme (Help) is administered by a government department and not the university.

Vice-chancellor Professor Frank Griffin said the Department of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (DHERST) looked after the loan programme.

He said UPNG had no control over it.

Professor Griffin was responding to queries on why the university was telling students to pay the compulsory fee of K2939 (NZ$1160) to register before applying for the loan.

Parents and students were hoping to pay the fee from the Help loan.

But Professor Griffin said DHERST had informed UPNG that a student had to register first at the university before applying for a Help loan.

He said registration was based on paying the compulsory fee – something UPNG had no control over.

‘Leave no one behind’
“Last year, we were advised by the government to leave no one behind,” Professor Griffin said.

“So we went ahead and registered all students.

“But this year, the policy was changed by the department (DHERST).

“Last year, we did not get all of the Help funding.

“It’s a programme done by DHERST so who they give the money or decide to give the money to is a question you have to ask the department.”

Asia Pacific Report republishes The National articles with permission.

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