University regulator rejects Sadeen meeting: 'Accept our terms or get out'

The university regulator has rejected a proposed meeting with Sadeen, warning the Jordanian firm that it must either accept all its conditions or withdraw its application to set up the 'American University of Malta'.

The national commission for higher education's outgoing chairman Martin Scicluna insisted that the terms laid out in the conditional acceptance letter for the granting of a university license two weeks ago were non-negotiable.

"Other than a newspaper report about Sadeen wanting a compromise on financial conditions imposed by the conditions and a request for a meeting, we have not heard anything from them since 30 June," Scicluna told a press conference at the Life Sciences Park.

"We will not hold a meeting with them until they agree with all the conditions laid out by the commission. The ball is in Sadeens court; they can either accept the conditions or withdraw from the project."

Scicluna will step down from his three-year tenure at the helm of the board tomorrow, but told the press that education minister Evarist Bartolo had given him his word that the NCFHE's new board will maintain his same stance.

"I had offered to stay on as chairperson for a short while longer to see Sadeen's application through, but Bartolo insisted that the law required me to leave my post or stay on for a further three years. I was not prepared to carry on for another three years," the 80-year-old chairman said.

The AUM project sparked outrage from the Opposition and environmentalists from the get-go because of Sadeen’s original plans to construct the entire campus on virgin land at Zonqor Point. Following a large protest, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced that the campus will be split in two – at Zonqor and at the former Dock 1 in Cospicua.

In his outgoing speech, Scicluna admitted that the AUM controversy has “dominated public perception” of the commission, but said that its conditional approval letter was proof of its status as an independent regulator.

After reviewing the Jordanian firm’s application for 14 months, the NCFHE officially accredited the AUM as a university, subject to a stringent set of conditions. It must be  

subjected to annual audits by Clemson University of South Carolina – its partner university - and frequent spot-checks and quality audits by the NCFHE.

Sadeen will have to give written assurance that any proposed change of over 10% in the shareholding of AUM’s corporate entities, and any proposed change in the beneficiaries of its American University of Malta Foundation will have to first be approved by the NCFHE.

For the first two years, AUM will require prior approval from the NCFHE for any changes or additions to its academic and senior administrative staff.

However, Sadeen’s legal representative Louai Twal was quoted by the Times as saying that the firm will attempt to negotiate a compromise.

“Things do not always come in either yes or no…there is always plenty of space for discussion, and we believe we will be facing a reasonable authority, which will be willing to study any justified request made to it and get back with a solution,” he said.

Sadeen plans to officially open the AUM in September, initially operating from within a campus in Smart City. It is targeting 100 students, mainly from the Middle East, for its first scholastic year.

“The longer Sadeen delays to accept our conditions, the less time it will have to start attracting students,” Scicluna said.