By President Enga Students Association 2011
Enga students of Divine Word University who are on scholarships would like to raise concerns with the Office of Higher Education regarding the cancellation of plane tickets.
Enga is a province located at the end of the Highlands Highway that starts in the Morobe and Madang Provinces.
There are many car accidents and hold-ups while traveling the pothole-filled highlands highway especially in the late and early hours.
Several Enga students have lost their belongings to rascals in Mt Hagen when buses drop them there in the early hours of the morning. Some of the incidents have been reported in daily newspapers and radio. There is no safety in Mt Hagen as rascal activities are escalating.
It was a privilege for us to travel by plane from Madang to Moresby to Hagen and catch a bus from Hagen to travel safely to Wabag. However, we learn that our return tickets have been cancelled this year. And we
all Enga students are dissatisfied with this decision. We raised our concerns with University administration but they said the Office of Higher Education had decided to cancel the tickets of the Enga scholarship students.
According to the Registrar’s office, the end of year travel budget was K44,000 short of what was required. So the usual air travel for Enga scholarship students was cancelled and the DWU administration gave K100 to each student to travel by road to Enga. The K100 bus fee given to each Enga student is the same amount given to students from Western Highlands, Jiwaka, Chimbu and Eastern Highlands despite the greater distances and PMV costs involved. On the other hand, students from Southern Highlands and Ela were issued tickets to travel by plane.
Southern Highlands, Ela and Enga are of equal distance from Madang. Why have students from the other two been given tickets and not the Enga students? Nowadays traveling the Highlands Highway is too risky. We hear from the daily newspapers and see fatal car accidents and hold-ups.
We Enga students feel that we are not being treated fairly. The safety of the Enga students has not been equally considered.
Enga students of Divine Word University who are on scholarships would like to raise concerns with the Office of Higher Education regarding the cancellation of plane tickets.
Several Enga students have lost their belongings to rascals in Mt Hagen when buses drop them there in the early hours of the morning. Some of the incidents have been reported in daily newspapers and radio. There is no safety in Mt Hagen as rascal activities are escalating.
It was a privilege for us to travel by plane from Madang to Moresby to Hagen and catch a bus from Hagen to travel safely to Wabag. However, we learn that our return tickets have been cancelled this year. And we
all Enga students are dissatisfied with this decision. We raised our concerns with University administration but they said the Office of Higher Education had decided to cancel the tickets of the Enga scholarship students.
According to the Registrar’s office, the end of year travel budget was K44,000 short of what was required. So the usual air travel for Enga scholarship students was cancelled and the DWU administration gave K100 to each student to travel by road to Enga. The K100 bus fee given to each Enga student is the same amount given to students from Western Highlands, Jiwaka, Chimbu and Eastern Highlands despite the greater distances and PMV costs involved. On the other hand, students from Southern Highlands and Ela were issued tickets to travel by plane.
Southern Highlands, Ela and Enga are of equal distance from Madang. Why have students from the other two been given tickets and not the Enga students? Nowadays traveling the Highlands Highway is too risky. We hear from the daily newspapers and see fatal car accidents and hold-ups.
We Enga students feel that we are not being treated fairly. The safety of the Enga students has not been equally considered.
Its really true, government should consider the distance we are travelling and the road condition. We are the future leaders of this nation and our lives must be protected coz its at stake. We as an Engan Students of Divine Word University we must fight for our rights. Remember " Do what you think is always Right"
ReplyDeleteThanks Mr. President of ESA. Joe for raising this concern.You are such a great leader and you will become a future leader of Enga.