Hlaudi Motsoeneng, Pallo Jordan and 3 Other Politicians Caught With Fake Academic Qualifications

Hlaudi Motsoeneng, Pallo Jordan and 3 Other Politicians Caught With Fake Academic Qualifications

  • Over the years, South African politicians have been caught fibbing about their lifestyle and other details about their lives
  • Some have been busted spinning a yarn about their qualifications, where they got them and how many they have
  • Briefly News compiled a list of some of Mzansi's public figures caught lying about their qualifications

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Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Johannesburg, South Africa, has covered policy changes, the State of the Nation Address, politician-related news and elections at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News for over seven years.

Hlaudi Motsoeneng and Pallo Jordan were caught lying about their qualifications
Motsoeneng and Pallo Jordan join the list of politicians who lied about their qualifications. Images: Felix Dlangamandla/Foto24/Gallo Image via Getty Images and Jean-Pierre Muller/AFP via Getty Images
Source: Getty Images

JOHANNESBURG— Politicians in South Africa are no strangers to controversy. Their private and public lives are constantly in the spotlight for right and wrong reasons. Briefly News examines five politicians caught lying about their academic qualifications.

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Hlaudi Motsoeneng lied about having matric certificate

SABC's former Chief Operations Officer and politician, Hlaudi Motoseneng, is one of South Africa's most controversial public figures. Motsoeneng shot through the ranks in the SABC from being a producer for Lesedi FM to being the COO in under a year. According to TimesLIVE, Motsoeneng lied about having a matric certificate, and when the SABC was caught out, its former chair, Ben Ngubane, said Motsoeneng didn't need one.

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Pallo Jordan lied about his qualifications

Anti-Apartheid activist and former African National Congress stalwart Pallo Jordan claimed he had qualifications from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the London School of Economics. BBC reported that the nation was stunned when investigations revealed that Jordan lied about his qualifications. He resigned following the scandal.

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Oscar Mabuyane allegedly obtained a bogus PhD

Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane was also embroiled in a bogus qualifications saga. According to IOL, Mabuyane allegedly obtained a bogus PhD in Public Administration from Fort Hare University. The Special Investigating Unit probed the allegations, but Mabuyane obtained a court order stopping them.

Noxolo Kieviet was investigated for qualification fraud

Noxolo Kieviet, the Public Service and Administration minister, was in hot water after the SIU probed her for committing qualifications fraud. IOL reported that she obtained her honours degree in administration and master's degree in public administration without a bachelor's degree.

Former COGTA minister Sicelo Shiceka lied, too

Former Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Sicelo Shiceka claimed he had a Master's in political economy from the University of Free State. According to My Broadband, Shiceka, who died in 2012, lied as the university revealed he did not complete his degree.

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Former COSATU secretary-general Zwelinzima Vavi stunned about fake PhD

In a similar article, Briefly News reported that COSATU's former secretary-general Zwelinzima Vavi was horrified after learning his PhD from Trinity Bible University was fake.

Vavi was among SA's public figures who received the PhD from a bogus university, and he said he felt cheated after discovering the qualification was not accredited.

Source: Briefly News

Authors:
Tebogo Mokwena avatar

Tebogo Mokwena (Current Affairs editor) Tebogo Mokwena is a Current Affairs Editor at Briefly News. He has a Diploma in Journalism from ALISON. He joined Daily Sun, where he worked for 4 years covering politics, crime, entertainment, current affairs, policy, governance and art. He was also a sub-editor and journalist for Capricorn Post before joining Vutivi Business News in 2020, where he covered small business news policy and governance, analysis and profiles. He joined Briefly News in 2023. Tebogo passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative Email: tebogo.mokwena@briefly.co.za