The article by Professor Belinda Bozzoli, a Member of Parliament and the DA’s Shadow Minister of Higher Education and Training, published by Daily Maverick on 13 November 2018 is a cunning piece of work.

Its introductory remarks can easily lull you into a false sense of ease, with its seemingly generous extolling of the significant role played by Unisa in the country’s higher education milieu. It correctly points out the centrality of the University of the Land in giving access to educational opportunities to students from diverse backgrounds – here and abroad, we should add. However, what one discovers throughout the rest of the article is its real intention – to insult and denigrate not just the leadership of Unisa, but its black personnel as well. These opening remarks are a deliberate gimmick whose aim is to flatter only to deceive.

To begin with, the professor’s article is replete with words that demonstrate her intention not to engage constructively with the report of the South African Human Rights Commission, but rather to hurl insult at those who commissioned the investigation and those who carried it out; purely because it does not conform to a narrative pushed by those she seemingly supports. The choice of words such as decay, tyranny, orgy, inhumane and toxic, among others; is a dead giveaway and quite worrisome.

At the outset, it must be emphasised that the decision by Unisa to approach the SAHRC for this intervention was informed by our considered view that the nature and depth of the issues to be investigated required the involvement of an external, independent body or person. This is a point the university has been making from the onset; including reiterating the message that our primary intention is to get to the root cause of the problem; and accordingly emerge with interventions aimed at mending relations and building social cohesion among all Unisa staff.

Thus, we find inputs such as the one by Professor Bozzoli into this process very alarmist and disturbing; as the only contribution they can make is to cause friction, resentment and polarisation among Unisa staff members. This undermines all efforts to build harmony within the university community.

Equally, her demeaning attack on a highly respected human rights body is very regrettable, though it does not warrant a response.

For the record, the programme to ensure that the university‘s workforce is representative and reflects the country’s demographics is not Unisa’s own creation. This is a statutory requirement imposed on all organisations in the country, with the Department of Labour holding organisations accountable for this. Organisations are compelled by law to have employment equity plans and clear targets in place, which inform how staff is recruited in line with these targets. Professor Bozzoli, of all people; should know better than to paint a picture of a reckless process whose aim is to empower blacks at the expense of whites without any basis whatsoever. Such advocacy is the stuff on which agent provocateurs thrive – something we hope she is not.

Ditto the internal process within the university to fill all vacancies. It is transparent and representative, with organised labour forming part of the process to ensure fairness and credibility. Where organised labour is not satisfied with its fairness and credibility, the process allows for the raising of an objection through a minority report; which is given serious consideration by the appointing authority. Furthermore, a candidate who has a gripe with the outcome of an appointment process also has recourse to the grievance processes of the university; as well as the CCMA and the Labour Court to challenge the outcome. The university has never discouraged nor stood in the way of candidates wishing to exercise this right.

It must also be emphasised that shortlisting is an objective process informed by the employment equity statistics of both the department where the vacancy exists as well as institutional statistics.

At all times in the filling of vacancies, only candidates who have obtained the required score to make them appointable are recommended for appointment. This is to ensure that only candidates who have demonstrated to a selection panel their ability and readiness to perform the required function are appointed.

The insinuation by Professor Bozzoli that the appointment of blacks equates to a threat on quality and declining of standards is a serious affront and insult to the black staff of our university, who are qualified, experienced, seasoned and dedicated professionals. It is in fact, an insult to the black race in general. It is made worse by the fact that it comes from the “pen” of somebody of her stature – an enlightened academic and public office bearer from whom better is expected in the quest to build a united South Africa.

I will not delve much into the persistent narrative by Professor Bozzoli – of denigrating Unisa academics. A member of our council challenged her after she made similar insinuations in an article early last year, and to date, she has not taken up the challenge.

In our midst at Unisa, we have award-winning academics, rated researchers and some of the country’s brilliant minds in a wide variety of fields – both black and white. We have academics who have been asked to serve on many corporate and academic structures, locally and internationally; because of their depth of knowledge and expertise. We are the go-to people as far as international bodies such as the African Council on Distance Education and the International Council on Distance Education are concerned. We continue to have global impact and enjoy international recognition for producing some of the most outstanding leaders in South Africa, Southern Africa and the rest of Africa.

As a parting shot, two other things are worthy of emphasis. Firstly, there is an ongoing engagement between the SAHRC, the university and staff on the report issued by the commission, including on the implementation of the recommendations aimed at finding lasting solutions to our challenges. All inputs will be factored into the final report. The staff of the university is made up of men and women who are matured and who will engage with the report rationally and in the best interest of the university. The tirade by Professor Bozzoli is therefore, in a manner of speaking; jumping the gun.

Secondly, Unisa is currently on a drive to transform itself so that it aptly fits the mantle of “the African university shaping futures in the service of humanity”. We are under no illusion that the road to a desired and transformed end-state will be plain-sailing. On the contrary, we anticipate many obstacles along the way, for which we are fully prepared. It is a mission we are approaching with the necessary balance between urgency and empathy; and we will endeavour at all times to bring everybody aboard. But we will not be deterred from fulfilling this mission.

The Chinese revolutionary Mao Tse Tung once said: “Our attitude towards ourselves should be ‘to be insatiable in learning’ and towards others ‘to be tireless in teaching’.” I cannot agree more!

Perhaps Professor Bozzoli will not mind paying us a visit so that we can assist in clarifying so many of the wrong insinuations in her article. DM

Professor Mandla Makhanya is the Principal and Vice Chancellor of Unisa