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Source: ONE News -
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Whitireia Community Polytechnic is putting some distance between itself and its Students' Association as a police investigation looks into hundreds of thousands of dollars of funds that have gone missing.
Police were investigating the Whitireia Polytechnic Student Association (WISA), after an audit uncovered more than $750,000 worth of spending on the executive in one year.
It also said almost $70,000 in assets was missing, including computer equipment worth $30,000.
An emergency union meeting was held today by the Association, after the report revealed questionable spending last year on mobile broadband services, iPod gear, student hardship grants and what it described as excessive executive payments.
The student leadership had since changed, but today a newly appointed member of the association executive, Naavin Mohandass, resigned in protest over past actions.
"Because of the scandals involved...I have no confidence in the executives anymore," Mohandass said.
It was not clear where the money had gone and who was to blame.
Recently the president of WISA was stood down and an acting president, Tim Manu, assumed the role.
Manu said the matter was now in the hands of the Crimes Investigation Bureau.
"Whoever is responsible for spending our student money senseless will be held accountable. I will make sure of that. Let the law judge the outcome of these offences."
The polytechnic's chief executive, Don Campbell, said it was important to note that WISA, as with all student associations, was independent from and separate to the institution whose students it represents and it had no control over the association, or what it did.
Campbell said WISA had its own constitution, its own executive and its own auditor.
"In 2009 approximately $345,000 was paid to the Association, but so far there has been no advice to the polytechnic about how much was actually spent in 2009 as we have not been provided with a set of accounts," Campbell said.
The polytech's Deputy Chief Executive, Arthur Graves, said Whitireia was now withholding student funds to the union.
"We have stopped handing over money and we are sitting on about $70,000 of student funds at present," Campbell said.
WISA said former student president Loretta Ryder was stood down and her vice president resigned four months ago.
Whitireia students had called for a re-election, which would be held next month.
Campbell said the polytechnic would support police in their investigation, and the new executive now running the Association.
The New Zealand Union of Students' Associations was reassuring students the Whitireia case was a one-off incident.
Association co-president David Do said student associations generally operate transparently but Whitireia isolated itself from good practices when it withdrew from the union two years ago.
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