USP Council appoints commission to implement BDO findings, recommendations

By EPARAMA WARUA

A commission appointed by The University of the South Pacific Council has been tasked with implementing the findings and recommendations of an independent investigative report by Auckland-based accounting firm BDO into recent allegations of abuse of office.

The allegations, which surfaced almost three months ago, were levelled against some senior management and former vice-chancellor Professor Rajesh Chandra.

The report was presented to the USP Council during a special meeting in Nadi last week and was undertaken after a paper was prepared by USP vice-chancellor and president Professor Pal Ahluwalia early this year titled, ‘Issues, Concerns and Breaches of Past Management and Financial Decisions’.

According to a statement from the USP Council on August 30 this year, the commission’s work would cover but not be limited to remuneration policies and control, inducement allowances, responsibility and acting allowances, bonuses, consultancy arrangements as well as human resources.

The commission would also look into succession planning, transition arrangements, governance and oversight, operation of senior management team, interface between governance and management, and committee structure and responsibility.

“To ensure the sound operation of the University, recommendations and findings from the BDO Auckland will need to be addressed,” the statement read.

“The commission will be overseen and report regularly to a Committee of Council comprised the Prime Minister of Cook Islands, Henry Puna, the Deputy Prime Minister of Samoa, Fiame Naomi Mata’afa and the Attorney-General of Fiji, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum.”

According to the USP Council, the commission would develop an action plan to be implemented over the coming year.

*Read more on the allegations

*Eparama Warua is a final-year journalism student at USP’s Laucala campus in Suva.