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Black-led Public Universities

Our beloved Nelson Mandela famously remarked that “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can
use to change the world.” This profound statement underscores the incredible ability of education to not only
foster personal achievement but also to drive significant societal transformation. Many of us, especially those
emerging from historically disadvantaged backgrounds, have found inspiration in this wisdom and similar
sentiments.

Nonetheless, recent acknowledgments from the executives of our public universities, shared during a
parliamentary portfolio committee meeting on Higher Education, have raised concerns about our hopes for a more
promising future. As we reflect on the unsettling news encompassing our public universities’ preference for
appointing foreign scholars over equally qualified South Africans, it becomes evident that higher education is a
key to eternal poverty.

It is truly disheartening that, as black South Africans, we find ourselves excluded from
meaningful academic positions that seek our developmental input, even after attaining the highest level of
education. The reality that this situation is prevalent in our black-led universities compels us to confront the
uncomfortable notion that our genuine freedom might lie beyond this life, rather than within the boundaries of the
land we regard as our own.

If our own institutions of higher education, particularly those led by our fellow black compatriots like the Central
University of Technology (CUT), adopt appointment practices that undermine the value of higher learning, then
what significance do advanced qualifications hold? Recent events at CUT illustrate two troubling scenarios:

firstly, a foreign national was appointed as a faculty dean over a highly qualified South African candidate;
secondly, a promising young black South African was inexplicably assigned to report to a hierarchy of less
qualified officials, seemingly for malicious reasons. What adds to the dismay is that the CUT’s Principal and
Vice-Chancellor (P/VC) defended their illogical preference for the foreign national at the expense of local talent.

Additionally, in another scenario, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the institution sought to undermine the
committee members’ intelligence out of pride, questioning their grasp of the difference between a general and
specialised qualification. It’s rather entertaining to observe that some university leaders have yet to realize that
our parliament is brimming with brilliant intellects now more than ever.

Their behaviour might not be seen as
isolated incidents; instead, it reflects a deep-rooted tradition in which the elite not only underestimate the
intelligence of our parliamentary members but also continuously question their choices throughout the entire
policy execution process.

The image above prompts a range of significant questions that, as a nation that values its dignity, we must address
if we are genuinely committed to achieving a brighter future or the promise of a better tomorrow. How should we
interpret the troubling realities facing our highly educated young black South Africans, who find themselves
continually disheartened by the unacceptable actions of our own black university leaders? Have we become a
nation that simply expresses shock at the fact that these young black achievers are being disregarded by those
entrusted with fostering their success?

The pressing question is: how deeply ingrained are these unlawful hiring
practices and the prevalence of ineffective leadership within our public universities?

If our university executives,
who are supposed to be accountable to a variety of stakeholders—including university councils and senates—
defend such behaviour, can we genuinely claim that our universities are thriving? Should we allow our institutions
to languish under leaders who fail to recognise their duty to nurture local talent, enhance knowledge, and
contribute to socio-economic progress, then we are jeopardising our future. It is a profound betrayal of our
collective achievements if we permit our universities to be managed by individuals who blatantly contradict our
social development goals.

Most critically, if this conduct is even slightly tolerated, we must prepare ourselves for
a continued drop in the number of individuals earning higher qualifications, because what incentive remains
otherwise?

Opinion By: Dr Jonas Sello Thinane

Highly Published and NRF Y -Rated
Post-Doctoral Fellow (2022-2025)
@ University of South Africa (Unisa)
College of Human Sciences (CHS)

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