The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Blade Nzimande, met with the University of Fort Hare (UFH) Council last week. He has now criticised the work done by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) into the affairs of the institution, following recent communication he has received about the current state of governance at the institution.
The University of Fort Hare is among the South African higher education institutions facing investigation or being closely monitored due to allegations of maladministration, mismanagement, corruption, false qualifications and governance concerns.
The Current State Of Affairs At UFH
Academic fraud, corruption, assassination attempts and even murder at the University are just some of the events that have made headlines in recent months.
These events are what led to an investigation being carried out by the SIU, however, Nzimande feels that it has not been transparent in its investigation into the academic fraud scandal involving a number of politicians and public servants.
Just last month, rumours began circulating that the Eastern Cape Premier, Oscar Mabuyane, had obtained fake qualifications from the University of Fort Hare. These allegations involve fraudulent admission into a Master’s Degree and PhD in Public Administration.
During Friday’s meeting, Nzimande revealed that he felt the University was not doing an adequate job of tackling the current challenges, thus increasing the risk of repeating these mistakes in the future.
Concerns had been raised regarding how the UFH Council and administration are conducting themselves, leading the Minster to believe that the principles of good governance are not being practised.
It is completely unacceptable to embrace the principle of ‘institutional autonomy’ yet ignore the requirements of public accountability. Similarly, we cannot tolerate a climate of fear on a public campus whilst proclaiming the right to academic freedom. Simply put, you cannot selectively pick and choose the rights you like, whilst ignoring those you do not embrace.
Nzimande further states that you cannot fight against corruption, but simultaneously violate the rights of others, abuse your power and avoid accountability.
Issues Raised By The Audit Committee
Last week, on 20 June, The Minister received correspondence from the Audit Committee, where concerns were raised about the current state of UFH.
These concerns include unlawful surveillance and investigations against Council members by the Vice-Chancellor (VC) or Management, not addressing information received from whistle-blowers, inability to provide the Investigation Reports by Management to the Committee and Council, and sponsors withdrawing as a result of the University’s reputational damage.
In order to resolve these urgent issues, the Committee believe that only an independent widespread investigation can get to the bottom of these issues, and bridge the gaps in the University systems and its processes.
As a final resort, this matter was escalated to Minister Nzimande.
Concerns Raised By The President Of The Convocation
A letter from the President of the Convocation also raised several concerns. These include a toxic teaching and learning environment, failure to effectively address fraudulent qualifications, negative publicity of the University, growing antipathy towards the Convocation Executive by the University, multiple litigation cases by disgruntled students, the University declining research output and the disproportionate allocation of security spending.
Following these findings, the UFH Convocation has requested that the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) initiate an independent investigation into the allegations of corruption in the institution.
“Council must adopt a stance that is reassuring to all and deter any inclination towards building factions or alienation. Council must exist to stabilise the university and functionality of this great institution.”
The investigation into the affairs at Fort Hare is ongoing and the Department is in support of this investigation
