Africa-Press – South-Africa. Many of South Africa’s biggest universities are gradually being undermined by mismanagement, corruption, and political interference, leading to dysfunction and potential collapse.
This warning comes from Dr Sefoko Ramoshaba, who has held management positions at major South African universities, including Vaal University of Technology, University of Johannesburg, and Nelson Mandela University.
“Many great universities that have collapsed in the African continent did not collapse in a single day,” Ramoshaba said.
“It was destroyed piece by piece, in a meticulous, snail-paced manner, by people on low incomes, under the failed leadership of executive management.”
The leadership structures normally consist of University Councils and/or Vice-Chancellors, Ramoshaba explained.
“The main symptoms of these failures are colour-coded as poor governance, financial irregularities, and interference by non-university actors in university management, mostly politicians,” he said.
Many South African universities that are dysfunctional became so because of failures in university governance structures.
Some notable examples Ramoshaba highlighted included Tshwane University of Technology, Walter Sisulu University, and the Vaal University of Technology.
The Central University of Technology, the University of Limpopo, and Mangosuthu University of Technology have also become dysfunctional, according to Ramoshaba.
He said the problems that led to the dysfunctionality of these universities included poor governance structures and elevated levels of corruption and kleptocracy.
The appointment of unqualified Vice-Chancellors and University Council members has also contributed to this decline.
Ramoshaba noted that the University of Fort Hare and Walter Sisulu University, in particular, have become crime scenes for the past few years.
“Universities become crime scenes and battlegrounds. Fort Hare University has been in the same situation for the past few years,” he said.
The university also recently made headlines after its vice-chancellor, Sakhela Buhlungu, was suspended pending disciplinary action on 30 March 2026.
This move came despite the fact that Buhlungu had led anti-corruption efforts at the institution for years, sparking controversy and renewed scrutiny.
The Fort Hare University Council explained that this decision followed consideration of a forensic report and other factors.
However, the Mail & Guardian reported that Buhlungu had reportedly flagged irregular executive appointments and sought to correct them.
Insiders claim his suspension comes amid resistance to his crackdown on corruption, which has unfolded in a climate of violence, including murders, alleged assassination attempts and unrest on campus.
Failures at South Africa’s top universities
Ramoshaba explained that South Africa’s so-called “top universities” are also prone to governance failures and challenges.
Governance challenges have been observed at the University of South Africa (UNISA) and the University of Cape Town, where internal governance disputes occur at the highest levels of power.
“Some universities become dysfunctional because the Vice-Chancellors are corruption busters, and the internal and external university criminal networks begin to create chaos, making the university ungovernable,” he said.
“Some universities collapse due to executive management’s failure to manage high debt levels, corruption, low staff morale, and endless strikes and shutdowns.”
Some universities are grappling with the fight for control of university resources between destructive Vice-Chancellors and Councils.
They are also struggling with the appointment of Vice-Chancellors based on political affiliation rather than qualifications and experience.
According to Ramoshaba, removing barriers to a functional and stable university requires addressing deep-rooted governance and operational failures.
These include corruption and crony capitalism within leadership structures, patronage networks, and management appointments based on race, creed, political affiliation or loyalty rather than merit.
This is compounded by a lack of oversight, weak fiscal controls, poor management practices, corruption within supply chain processes, payroll mismanagement – such as ghost workers, and unstable governance systems.
Further challenges include dilapidated infrastructure, the offering of non-accredited qualifications, and the capture of university resources by criminal and business cartels.
Ramoshaba added that universities must also address the overall lack of clear institutional vision and meaningful research output.
UNISA pushes back
Daily Investor reached out to the universities mentioned in this article to address claims of mismanagement within their institutions.
UNISA’s executive director of institutional advancement and spokesperson, BB Senokoane, pushed back against the claims Ramoshaba made against the university.
UNISA “holds the firm view that any assertions of governance challenges at the institution, no matter which platform they are articulated on, are untrue, unfounded and, in many instances, grossly exaggerated”, Senokoane said.
“The record shows that the university received four consecutive unqualified audit opinions between 2021 and 2024, and is on track to match or surpass this for 2025 and beyond.”
“This is one of the clearest affirmations of the excellent state of governance and financial management at the university.”
Daily Investor also asked UNISA about a 2023 investigation into the university conducted by independent assessor Professor N. Themba Mosia, which was commissioned by the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation.
The report detailed a profound crisis of governance, management, and operational dysfunction at the university.
The investigation revealed that the University Council had dismally failed in its fiduciary duties, enabling a pervasive culture of non-compliance, financial irregularity, and impunity.
It also alleged that UNISA’s executive management was severely paralysed by a deeply fractured relationship between the Vice-Chancellor and the Registrar.
Mosia added that a bloated organisational structure heavily reliant on acting appointments has degraded its institutional stability and service delivery.
Financially, the report alleged that the university had been plagued by gross violations of Supply Chain Management.
This includes unbudgeted multi-million-rand salary increases, an irregular laptop advance scheme, and questionable refurbishments to the Vice-Chancellor’s official residence.
Mosia explained that UNISA’s core academic mission had been severely compromised, with students facing disastrous administrative service, failing ICT infrastructure during online examinations, and data breaches.
He added that the environment was a toxic environment fueled by fear, bullying, and inappropriate political interference from external actors and unions.
Concluding that the institution is in a critical and unhealthy state, Mosia recommended that UNISA be placed under full administration, relieving both the Council and executive management of their duties to restore institutional integrity.
However, UNISA dismissed the assessor’s report “as fatally flawed and without fact or merit”, Senokoane said. “The university has taken the report on legal review.”
“The report remains interdicted and the subject of the legal review proceedings pending in the High Court. The university believes that it has a strong case and that the prospects are high that the report will be set aside.”
None of the other universities mentioned in this article gave a response before the date of publication.
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