Pretoria | Wednesday
THE University of South Africa (Unisa), Technikon SA and the distance education centre of Vista University are to become a single institution, the Open Learning University of South Africa, from February 1.
In a notice in the Government Gazette, Education Minister Kader Asmal also announced that former Mpumalanga premier Mathews Phosa, who currently leads Technikon SA’s council, would be the chairman of the university’s interim council.
Unisa’s council failed to heed Asmal’s request to nominate four members to the new council.
Asmal had long been at loggerheads with the council due to its decision to, against his wishes, make long-term senior appointments despite the pending merger.
The appointments included that of former SA Human Rights Commission chairman Barney Pityana as vice-chancellor and principal.
In his Government Gazette notice, Asmal said: ”As no nominations were received from the council of the University of South Africa, the Minister requests that the interim council consider co-option from the existing council of the University of South Africa. Any co-opted member shall have no voting rights.”
Besides Phosa, the interim council would comprise of Mashupye Kgaphola, chairman of the Vista’s council, as well as Lincoln Mali, Nkateko Nyoka and Dr Pundy Pillay.
Asmal also announced that Technikon Natal and the ML Sultan Technikon would merge to become the Durban Institute of Technology from April 1.
Judge Thembani Jali, current chair of ML Sultan’s council, was appointed as chairman of the new interim council. The other members include Anglican Bishop Rubin Phillip, Beulah Davis, Dr MNA Mokoape and M Madanjit.
The interim councils of both the Open Learning University of SA and the Durban Institute of Technology were appointed for a period not exceeding six months to perform functions relating to governance.
Asmal said the interim councils should appoint interim bodies to manage the day-to-day activities of their institutions and ensure the establishment of a permanent council and other structures.
The current contracts of employees of the current institutions would continue existing.
The students’ representative councils of the various technikons and universities would exist as separate entities until a single SRC for each new institution had been duly elected, the notice said. – Sapa