Africa-Press – South-Africa. The Academics Union of the University of Cape Town has ripped into UCT’s council chairperson, Babalwa Ngonyama, and vice-chancellor Mamokgethi Phakeng ahead of a special council meeting that is expected to be held on Thursday evening.
This after allegations surfaced Ngonyama had misled the Senate after the departure of UCT’s former deputy vice-chancellor for teaching and learning Lis Lange.
In a scathing statement released by the Academics Union, its president, Kelley Moult, said members were concerned about the recent developments that were debated at a recent Senate meeting.
“These events have serious implications for the reputation of the university and for the strength of our governance processes. They also undermine the cornerstones of a university – institutional autonomy, academic freedom, and the space for robust debate,” the statement said.
Moult added the allegations were broad and included potentially misleading statements to the Senate, tensions and instability in the executive and the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).
“We are concerned that NDAs are frequently deployed as tactics in corporate institutions, which should have no place at a public institution committed to transparency such as ours,” she said.
The statement comes after concerns about the reputation and academic credibility of UCT surfaced amid controversy over senior leaders who left the institution.
It also resulted in Phakeng cutting short her five-month sabbatical and returning to work.
UCT vice-chancellor cuts sabbatical short amid controversy over senior staffer exodus
Ngonyama has called for a special council sitting to discuss last Friday’s Senate meeting.
The controversy revolves around an explosive letter by Lange, which News24 has seen, that stated the relationship between Phakeng and herself had broken down and her tenure could not go “beyond 2022”.
“I have no personal reasons for stepping down,” she said in the letter, in contradiction to what Ngonyama reportedly told the UCT Senate.
It was told her departure was initiated by Lange herself and was a decision made for “personal reasons”.
Moult said the letter by Ngonyama to Senate members contained several inaccuracies.
“The chair of council states, in relation to the question posed to her by Senate regarding the departure of Associate Professor Lange, that ‘there was a reasonable expectation that [her] response would remain confidential to Senate and its members’’ There can be no such expectation.”
Moult added the Senate agenda was not confidential but was not for publication outside of the university.
She said:
Moult added the Academics Union rejected the assertions made in the strongest possible terms.
Phakeng returned to work on Wednesday.
In a letter addressed to staff and students, she said, given the recent developments, “it was necessary and important for me to return to resume my full responsibilities as vice-chancellor sooner than planned”.
“I have had an update on how the most recent Senate meeting of 30 September proceeded. I have noted with concern reports from relevant colleagues on developments at this meeting.”
Phakeng added the Senate played a vital role in the functioning of any university, and “the University of Cape Town’s Senate has a central place in its governance structure”.
“Consequently, it is essential that both the university’s council and its extended executive team address what happened at last Friday’s Senate meeting thoroughly and with urgency,” she said.
The Black Academic Caucus (BAC) has also entered the fray.
“The BAC does not see what is special about the matter of the erstwhile DVC [deputy vice-chancellor] of teaching and learning.
“Why should she and her fellow white travellers want to drag everyone in her so-called non-disclosure agreement (NDA)?
“She never took the university community into confidence when she signed the NDA – something the BAC views as indicative of the untransformed nature of UCT systems and subtle racism that still exists,” it said in a statement.
“It is subtle racism because when the erstwhile DVC of transformation, student affairs and social responsiveness [a black female] left UCT, UCT never went into a crisis.
“The Senate never tabled motions to establish the reasons for the departure. The Senate never received a letter, and no debate was ever entered into.
“The erstwhile DVC of transformation was forgotten before she left the door. By the way, the letter of this erstwhile DVC of teaching and learning was smuggled through irregular means to Senate. Senate confoundingly flouted its own governance processes.”
UCT has been approached for comment which will be added once received.
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