The Supreme Court has refused application by the ‘Atenisi Institute for an interim injunction against the Tonga National Qualifications Accreditation Board.
The Institute wanted an interim injunction preventing the TNQAB from stopping the Institute from recruiting new students; imposing new, amended or revoking the institute’s qualifications and publishing anything about its compliance with the board’s regulations.
The Lord Chief Justice Paulsen said making the orders sought would serve no useful purpose.
“ ‘Atenisi has not satisfied me that it has good prospects of success,” the judge said.
“I do not accept that ‘Atenisi’s position can be so dire that it is necessary to issue an injunction.”
Instead, he said he had allocated an early date to hear the matter at trial.
The ‘Atenisi opened in 1975 and operated without interruption since then.
It lodged an application for registration as a university with the TNQAB in 2010. After a legal dispute it was registered as the Tertiary Academy of ‘Atenisi Institute in 2011.
The Institute’s registration was renewed in 2013 and 2015 until August 2017 after which its registration lapsed.
In 2015 it was advised by the TNQAB that it would not be permitted to renew its registration as a University;
In February last year ‘Atenisi filed an action for a declaration that it was a University.
In March 2018 the TNQAB told the Institute it considered it was delivering unaccredited programmes.
It was told to show what it was going to do to have the programmes accredited and told that if it did not comply the TNQAB could impose new or amended conditions or revoke the Institute’s registration.
The Institute argued in court that not being able to recruit students would endanger its financial status and continuing operations.
However, Lord Chief Justice Paulsen said prospective students had the right to know their proposed courses of study were to be delivered by an entity not registered under the Act and that any qualifications earned may not be recognised by the kingdom’s largest employer, the government.
“The students’ right to be informed outweighs ‘Atenisi’s interest in recruiting them,” he said.
The main points
- The Supreme Court has refused application by the ‘Atenisi Institute for an interim injunction against the Tonga National Qualifications Accreditation Board.
- The Institute wanted an interim injunction preventing the TNQAB from stopping the Institute from recruiting new students; imposing new, amended or revoking the institute’s qualifications and publishing anything about its compliance with the board’s regulations.
