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Vice-chancellor in hot water
28/11/2006 12:51 - (SA)
Durban - The University of KwaZulu-Natal's (UKZN) vice-chancellor Malegapuru Makgoba has stepped down from his post pending investigations into claims of sexual harassment and victimisation levelled at him.
Sources said Makgoba offered to step down and that this was accepted by a full session of the university council late on Monday night.
However, university spokesperson Professor Dasarath Chetty would not officially confirm whether Makgoba would be stepping aside, but did say that a press briefing would be held at the university by the vice chairman of the council Mac Mia (CORRECT) at 15:00 on Tuesday.
Claims of sexual harassment and victimisation have been made against Makgoba and council chairman Vincent Maphai.
Irregular activities
The UKZN has also been rocked by claims that the awarding of a master of commerce degree to its chief financial officer Professor Kanthan Pillay was highly irregular.
In a statement released on Monday, Makgoba said instructions had been given to university registrar Dr Edith Mneney to "initiate immediately a due and fair process to nullify the MCom Degree".
He also said he had issued instructions to "the relevant divisions that all those implicated in the award of the degree" face disciplinary procedures.
He quoted the Senate Sub-Committee recommendation as saying that "Professor Pillay's dissertation, his registration as a student, and the examination and award of his MCom degree was fatally flawed. It was entirely irregular from beginning to end, with all the persons mentioned in the report having to share in varying degrees the responsibility for this."
There are unconfirmed reports that Judge Ray Zondo, judge president of the labour court, would be investigating the sexual harassment and victimisation claims. These have been made by Pumela Msweli-Mbanga, the dean and acting deputy vice chancellor of the college of law and management.
She is also the person accused of overriding external moderators who determined that Pillay should not be awarded the master of commerce degree.
- SAPA
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