UKZN to release results of Makgoba probe
UNIVERSITY of KwaZulu-Natal vice chancellor, Professor Malegapuru William Makgoba, against whom allegations of perjury have been made, will know the outcome of an internal investigation tomorrow.
The university’s spokeswoman, Nomonde Mbadi, confirmed yesterday that the UKZN council would release the outcome of an internal investigation into the allegations this week.
But the former UKZN staffer who had called for an investigation into Makgoba’s al- legedly false claim that he had been a doctoral thesis supervisor, said yesterday he had no faith in the council-run process.
Kanthan Pillay, the former head of finance at the institution, said he found it strange that he appeared to have been sidelined by the council.
“I called for the investigation, yet I, as a complainant, have not been asked to come and recount my version of events to the university council-appointed senior counsel (an advocate) who has been instructed by the university attorneys,” he said. “How can (they) make a decision without my input?”
Pillay said that he knew that the council would be meeting tomorrow, but was surprised that it had come to a decision so soon.
He said that he could not understand how Makgoba could be investigated internally by a council of colleagues, and not by an independent body like its audit and risk committee or an assessor appointed by the minister of higher education.
Controversy had erupted in 2008 after a former UKZN student, Nobubele Potwana, was acquitted of corruption for allegedly paying her professor to help with a doc- toral thesis.
Potwana – who brought a high court action against the university for withdrawing her PhD degree – and her doctoral supervisor, Pumela MsweliMbanga, the university’s former management studies dean, were charged with corruption in 2008.
Pillay said recently that while testifying in Potwana’s matter, Makgoba allegedly lied to the court about his role in supervising the thesis of another doctoral student, TS Pillay.
TS Pillay then produced a letter from Professor Kenneth Siddle, of the University of Cambridge, stating that Siddle had been his supervisor at the time.
Colonel Colin Naidoo of the SAPS commercial crimes unit, has confirmed that police were investigating the matter.