Reactionary troops rallying in mountain hotel hideouts to subvert the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) … or concerned academics meeting to discuss ways of promoting both transformation and excellence.
These polar opposites in interpretations of recent upheavals at UKZN emerge from written communications among university staff fiercely contestating what transformation means and how it can best be achieved. Vice-chancellor Malegapuru Makgoba is a prolific protagonist in ongoing e-mail battles wracking the university; while numerous other academics have been posting messages on a website dedicated to debating change at UKZN.
Recent media reports have recorded that the saga began when the Black African Academics’ Forum (BAAF) at the university produced a document deploring the slow pace of transformation. The document noted that only 17% of the university’s staff are black South Africans, 2% coloured, 27% Indian and 54% white, and proposed ways of rectifying this skewed profile, including prioritising black Africans as preferred candidates for appointment.
In response, an informal group of 13 academics met at a hotel between Durban and Pietermaritzburg on June 9. Professor Robert Morrell of the school of education chaired this meeting, from which emerged a document that was intended to form the basis for discussion at a second meeting, to be held on June 20.
This document agrees that racial inequities need addressing, but it differs from the BAAF on how to do this.
Morrell circulated the document to numerous staff members, and invited anyone interested to the second meeting. The document identified four priority areas: racial equity, research excellence in a context of global academic competition, democratic decision-making, and administrative efficiency.
At this point Makgoba (pictured) intervened, first with a letter on June 15 to Morrell. Referring to the document and invitation, he asked, ”Who has given you such a mandate? You seem to delude yourself about your role in the university … ”
He wrote that he is ”responsible for transformation in the university”, and accused Morrell of ”continu[ing] to stir trouble and sow divisions … with your divisive operations and agenda”. He referred also to ”old boys’ networks that have characterised racist liberal universities in South Africa … [and] destroyed the quality and standards of scholarship in our universities”.
The letter concluded by saying that Makgoba would present Morrell’s document to the council ”to show the extent of conservative resistance to transformation from academics like yourself who continue to pretend otherwise”.
Morrell’s reply said Makgoba’s tone was ”hostile”, that ”debate is being closed down in this university”, and that Makgoba’s e-mail is an example of ”intimidation”.
The following day, Makgoba e-mailed professors Fikile Mazibuko (head of the college of humanities) and Renuka Vithal (dean of education), saying he was attaching Morrell’s document ”for action”. He wrote that he was copying his e-mail to some senate members and others ”for them to be aware of such underhanded, unethical and unprofessional activities within the university”.
There are ”pockets of resistance to transformation and equity”, and ”the leaders of these pockets … are so desperate that they have … resorted to rallying their troops to mountain hotel hideouts where they can discuss ways of undermining the success of the merger and the reorganisation the university is undergoing.”
Finally, in a letter to Morrell the day before the intended June 20 meeting, Makgoba said Morrell needed formal permission. Morrell told the Mail & Guardian he became aware of this letter only at 6pm, and so would have had to seek permission the following morning, by which time it would have been too late to alert others if permission was not granted. The meeting was therefore not held, and staff felt Makgoba had banned it.
Makgoba was abroad this week, and did not answer questions e-mailed to him on Wednesday or three cellphone calls. Acting vice-chancellor Leana Uys said she could not answer questions about correspondence between Makgoba and colleagues. However, on the intended June 20 meeting, she said ”the invitation was addressed to ‘Dear All’, making it look as though every staff member was invited. This made it necessary to have formal approval.”
She also said the university executive has been meeting with all four unions to discuss issues such as racial equity. The BAAF document was discussed in the senate for more than two hours, and will go to faculty boards for further discussion. ”This process can hardly be seen as stifling debate,” she said, and ”does not preclude debates in other groups or forums”.