Laisa Taga
So it’s official. The University of the South Pacific (USP) financial position is a worry. So much so that the governing body, the USP Council, has quickly moved in to address the issue.

The problems have highlighted big pay rises for senior staff, increased staff numbers, questions over how the regional university was restructured, and priorities on its campuses.

Following the early departure of Australian Anthony Tarr from the Vice Chancellor’s post, curbs have been put on the Vice Chancellor’s powers to negotiate salaries.

Council vice chairman Ikbal Jannif, a respected and successful Fiji businessman, confirmed financial worries, saying: “The current financial situation is of concern and the council and the finance and investment committee have moved in quickly to address the issue.”

Although no details or breakdowns were forthcoming from Mr Jannif, what Letter from Suva understands is that the university’s current financial position has been brought about due to:
• its increasing staffing costs–mainly in the past two years; and
• the cost of the total restructure.

This restructure cost, according to Mr Jannif was “not only in personnel, but also in facilities as well”.

All these things, according to Mr Jannif, have put pressure on USP’s reserves “which have come down in the last two years. 

“It is true that staff costs have escalated in the last two years. But it should be remembered that the university went through a major restructuring which was already in place before former Vice Chancellor Professor Anthony Tarr joined the university.

“The restructuring resulted in several new posts being created and as a consequence, USP salary bill increased.

“Professor Tarr negotiated remuneration packages within the powers delegated to the office of the Vice Chancellor.”

Under these powers, Tarr negotiated a tax free salary for himself totalling $470,000 (basic salary $370,000 and allowances $100,000), according to leaked documents.

PACKAGES

The leaked documents revealed salary packages for his senior management team:

* Deputy Vice Chancellor: $339,937.46
* Pro Vice Chancellor Research: $247,737.55
• Pro Vice Chancellor Academic: $247,737.55
• Registrar: $234,537.55
• Dean Faculty of Business and Economics: $274,770.38
• Dean Faculty of Science and Technology: $274,770.38
• Dean Faculty of Islands and Ocean: $260,937.55
• Director of Planning & Development: $247,737.55

These packages include basic salary; gratuity; inducement payments ranging between $50,000 to $71,000; special allowances which include administration allowances ranging from $12,000 to $24,000, and housing allowances of $48,000; and 10% superannuation.

Mr Jannif said: “What we can say, following Professor Tarr’s resignation from USP early this year and as a consequence of the increased cost of these negotiated remuneration packages, the council at its meeting in May this year withdrew those delegated powers from the Vice Chancellor.

“Instead the council has set up a subcommittee which will now negotiate remuneration packages.”

SUBCOMMITTEE

The subcommittee includes the Pro-Chancellor, Samoa’s Fiame Naomi Mata’afa; Fiji’s Fay Yee (new chair of the finance and investment committee); and Mr Jannif (chair of the audit committee and vice-chair of the USP Council).

Council meeting minutes tabled at the May meeting had expressed concern at the increasing staff numbers which increased from 1547 in 2005 to 1708 in 2006.

It also raised questions about whether there existed adequate financial control over the recruitment of new staff.

Money problem is not the only worry for the university. There’s been some disgruntled, unhappy and demoralised academics at the Suva campus concerned about the disparity in remuneration and workload.

Some feel they are not being well compensated for the amount of work they put in.

STUDENTS

Others say the university is so money-focussed that it has neglected its top priority: the students.

“The classes are far too big that one cannot be effective. As a result, students are left on their own to fend for themselves and they struggle,” one senior lecturer said.

Letter from Suva also hears that some of them have yet to meet the deans of their faculties.

“It is now nearly the end of the academic year, and we still have not met our dean. He hasn’t even made any effort to call a meeting of all his staff nor has he bothered to visit us.

“I am not sure whether he knows any of us and our individual specialities,” another academic told Letter from Suva.

HEADS

Several have suggested it would have been better to have heads of schools running the various schools like in the past. This rather than having “overpaid” deans heading the faculties.

Under the new restructure, the various schools were merged into four faculties—Faculty of Business and Economics, Faculty of Science and Technology Faculty of Islands and Ocean and Faculty of Arts and Law. Each is headed by a dean.

Let’s hope the new Vice Chancellor when he’s appointed will address these problems immediately.

That’s so students get value in education. And the university refocuses on what it has been doing over many years: being a regional centre of education excellence.