UCT Governance Issues Intensify, Union Sends Lawyer's Letter Claiming Council Sitting Was Unlawful

• The Academics Union of the University of Cape Town (UCT) has labelled the special council sitting as unlawful
• The union sent a lawyer’s letter to the chairperson of the university council naming several reasons for the comments
• The letter also called for the vice-chancellor, council chairperson, and deputy chairperson to recuse themselves

CAPE TOWN - The Academics Union of the University of Cape Town (UCT) has declared the special council sitting held last week unlawful. Several important decisions were made during the session, including an investigation into the conduct of the UCT’s vice-chancellor, Mamokgethi Phakeng.

The union sent a lawyer’s letter to the chairperson of the university council and said there were several reasons why the sitting was unlawful.

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The letter stated there was a conflict of interest and bias on the part of the council chair, vice-chancellor, and deputy chair of the council as well as the unlawfulness, irrationality, and unreasonableness of its decision.

The union wants a special council meeting to be held within five days, according to News24. It also demanded that the council meeting be convened without the participation or under the influence of the vice-chancellor, council chairperson, Babalwa Ngonyama, and deputy chairperson, Pheladi Gwangwa.

The letter further stated that the trio should recuse themselves from further process-related matters in which they have a conflict of interest.

Meanwhile, three former presidents of the UCT Convocation called for calm amid the troubles at the university. Barney Pityana, Lorna Houston, and Eddy Maloka urged the university to forge unity within the council and across the UCT community and seek a lasting solution, according to IOL.

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Former UCT security guards ask for jobs back after being tricked into a strike that got them fired

In a related matter, Briefly News also reported that 31 security guards who lost their jobs in July 2022 after being tricked into striking have asked the University of Cape Town (UCT) for their jobs back.

The workers stormed into a June exam at UCT, demanding that the university insource them. The security guards were subsequently fired by the security company that employed them following the protest.

The security guards’ actions were fueled by deception advice from a student activist who pretended to be a lawyer and gaslit the group into action.

Source: Briefly News