One of the first things that Professor Peter Mbati will have to do when he officially takes office in two weeks as vice-chancellor of the University of Venda (Univen) is to deal with a damning internal audit about widespread financial and administrative irregularities at the institution.
The audit reveals that some staff members at Univen, including senior managers, have been enriching themselves at the university’s expense.
Higher Learning obtained a copy of the audit by PricewaterhouseCoopers, which was completed in April and is still confidential.
”I would have wanted my term to have started differently,” Mbati said this week. ”But I think in any instance of adversity there is opportunity. The current situation gives me an opportunity to lay out my good plans, especially those regarding leadership and governance at the university.”
The audit was sparked last year following disclosures that university spokesperson Rufus Kharidzha and acting finance director Tendai Ramulongo allegedly used money from the government’s National Student Financial Aid Scheme and XStrata, earmarked for poor students, to pay for the education of their own dependants. They were suspended in March.
One of the audit’s two sections deals exclusively with financial aid irregularities, while the other deals with administrative failures.
On the fraudulent allocation of study bursaries, the audit’s findings include: criteria for the allocation of Xtrata bursaries was not clearly defined and these bursaries were given to students linked to some staff members; there was no direct link between academic record, financial position and the amount of the bursary awarded; bursaries awarded to students in receipt of other bursaries; and inadequacies in the running of the Univen Foundation’s bursaries.
In addition, the audit’s findings on administrative processes reveal that: a suspended former finance director continued to receive a R1 000 cellphone allowance and salary bonuses between June 2006 and October 2007; numerous irregular appointments were allegedly made on the basis of favouritism; internal job advertisements were published only in Venda to exclude non-Venda speakers; cases of missing university property were not properly investigated; and staff were engaged in extensive travel on private business.
Another senior staff member, functions officer NE Nevhulamba, recently resigned from her position and is under investigation for her alleged involvement in university-related tender irregularities. She allegedly received more than R1-million over three years from the university after her business secured a cleaning contract with Univen.
Mbati said he was concerned about the latest reports of corruption at Univen. Sensitive management areas where there appear to be problems need to be tightened.
”For the three months that I have been vice-chancellor-designate there have indeed been difficulties, especially those linked to influential senior officials. But I don’t see any of that as danger. I have no fears getting into this job because most of the things that are happening at Univen come with the territory,” Mbati said.
Jim Leatt, acting vice-chancellor, will remain at Univen during the transition period, which will end in December. He said disciplinary action is being taken against implicated staff members. This, he said, includes the dismissal of Nevhulamba, Kharidzha and Ramulongo, pending disciplinary hearings.
”The internal auditors have also made recommendations with regard to tightening university financial controls and systems. The recommendations were accepted by council and management is in the process of implementing them,” said Leatt.
”The university, in line with recommendations by the internal auditors, is in the process of procuring a whistle-blowing service for the university community,” he said.
Univen student representative council president Terence Khuaho said the ”current corruption and maladministration investigations could mean that he [Mbati] will not have an easy ride”.