---
title: "Yusuf Cassim addresses ‘bizarre racial prejudice’ after higher education deputy minister appointment"
description: "With his eyes set on reorganising student funding and training models, Yusuf Cassim also has to contend with ‘political plots’ that seek to destabilise the country and perpetuate racial division."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "DIVISIVE RHETORIC"
author: "Riaan Marais"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/riaan-marais/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-07-16-yusuf-cassim-addresses-bizarre-racial-prejudice-after-higher-education-deputy-minister-appointment/"
published: "2026-07-16T22:48:28"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 1430
---

# Yusuf Cassim addresses ‘bizarre racial prejudice’ after higher education deputy minister appointment

> With his eyes set on reorganising student funding and training models, Yusuf Cassim also has to contend with ‘political plots’ that seek to destabilise the country and perpetuate racial division.

By Riaan Marais · Published 17 July 2026, 00:48 SAST

## Key points
- Yusuf Cassim has hit back at ‘bizarre’ racial and religious abuse after his appointment as higher education deputy minister, saying South Africa’s unity project is still badly unfinished.
- The former DA student activist says his politics were shaped in mixed schools and at Nelson Mandela University, where he helped build the Democratic Alliance Student Organisation (Daso) and later became SRC president.
- Cassim says his new brief will centre on NSFAS, student funding delays, and a hard look at how Setas and training models can actually better serve students.
- He insists he is not there for ribbon-cutting — and warns that politicians who exploit division are profiting from a dangerous ‘divide and conquer’ game.

## Content

Newly appointed Deputy Minister of Higher Education Yusuf Cassim says the racist and anti-Muslim abuse directed at him since his appointment is a reminder that South Africa still has a long way to go in building a united nation.

“Education is important, but I think even more important is a societal effort to unite and to recommit to the nation-building programme. You can’t fix that with education \[alone\],” he said at a National Press Club event on Thursday.

Sitting behind the mic, wearing a traditional Islamic headscarf and sporting a long beard, he addressed the issues he wished to tackle in his new post, as well as the online hatred directed at him since his appointment.

“Following my appointment, I became the target of deeply unfortunate expressions, attacks on my faith, racial prejudice, and even questions around my nationality, which were really quite bizarre.

“Those comments reminded me that our work of building a united South Africa is far from complete.

“To try and belittle a person’s belonging is really painful,” Cassim said.

![Riaan - YusufInterview](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/7SQDWWwZNgkxzYUSJrDmrmMZIFQ=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/ED_388439_277610.jpg)

*Deputy Minister of Higher Education Yusuf Cassim. (Photo: Gallo Images / OJ Koloti)*

In a conversation with Daily Maverick shortly after his appointment, Cassim painted a picture of his upbringing and how that set him on his current path, and what he hopes to achieve in the foreseeable future.

Growing up in Kariega, in Nelson Mandela Bay, the 36-year-old and his family lived in the Rosedale neighbourhood, a predominantly coloured area in accordance with the Group Areas Act of the apartheid era.

“I was among the first cohort of learners who were integrated into the former Model C schools, meaning I was fortunate to share a class with children from all backgrounds and cultures.

“My friends were white English, white Afrikaner, Malay, coloured, isiXhosa, all different backgrounds. These were close friends of mine. I grew up in their homes. Their parents became like parents to me.

“It gave me the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of all different South African cultures.”

Cassim attended College Hill and Muir High School, where he enjoyed playing rugby, starting as a loose forward before playing wing.

After graduating from high school, he attended Nelson Mandela University (NMU) to study accounting. This is where his interest in politics really took off.

### NMU Student Representative Council

At the time, Cassim said the NMU Student Representative Council (SRC) was marred by repeated corruption scandals and the mismanagement of funds, and served no meaningful purpose for the student body.

He served on various student organisations at the time and wanted to provide an alternative to the South African Students Congress, the ANC-affiliated student organisation at the helm of the SRC.

“I was not necessarily a DA supporter at the time, but I knew they wanted to form a student organisation at NMU, so I became one of the founding members of the Democratic Alliance Student Organisation (Daso).”

After an uphill battle for Daso to be recognised as an official student organisation, it was eventually recognised in 2010, and in 2011 it won the SRC elections. Cassim became SRC president.

“2011 was truly a highlight year. We won not because we were politicians, but because we were activists and we fought for the students.”

During his tenure, Daso’s SRC Student Bailout Fund was established, aimed at assisting deserving but financially vulnerable students. They also expanded the university’s shuttle service to include various parts of the city – an achievement that made them enemies in the city’s taxi industry.

Cassim climbed through the DA ranks and in 2014 stood for Parliament, with a focus on higher education. In 2019, he was moved from the National Assembly to the Eastern Cape provincial legislature, a move that he believes helped his career.

![Riaan - YusufInterview](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/rUlltsAlnHUCXZ4e0auyOC903_M=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/AV_00043014_105788.jpg)

*Then DA Youth leader Yusuf Cassim at the opening of Parliament and the State of the Nation Address on 17 June 2014. (Photo: Gallo Images / Sunday Times / Esa Alexander)*

“At the time, I had little interest in the \[national\] political theatre, and I felt I could make a more meaningful impact on a more local level.”

While higher education remained close to Cassim’s heart, his focus shifted towards the safety and security portfolio, influenced by living in Gqeberha’s northern areas, near neighbourhoods such as Helenvale, Barcelona and Salt Lake, known for violent street gangs.

“I moved myself into safety and security. I admit, I have no background, but I have a deep personal interest in the safety of these areas because my family and I live here.”

His commitment to this cause was reaffirmed when he attended a large-scale DA anti-crime march last week, a stone’s throw from his home. His popularity among the residents of the northern area was evident from the deafening cheers every time he took to the stage.

![Riaan - YusufInterview](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/7bXB7htnAMsGqFWZsgOuXjausyI=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/DAMarch4_597909.jpg)

*Deputy Minister of Higher Education Yusuf Cassim addresses the crowd at the DA's anti-crime march in Nelson Mandela Bay. Cassim, born and raised in Gqeberha, has long been an advocate for community safety in the city's gang-ridden northern areas. (Photo: Riaan Marais)*

Asked about his appointment as deputy minister of higher education, Cassim said he initially declined the position when the ministry approached him, as he was afraid it would detract from his commitment to issues in the Eastern Cape and Nelson Mandela Bay.

“However, after careful consideration, I realised the new role provided me with the opportunity to refocus on the issues that got me involved in politics in the first place.

“And if I told a young Yusuf, running around the streets of Rosedale, that he would one day carry the title of deputy minister, he would have laughed in my face,” Cassim said, a smile breaking out on his face.

### **NSFAS and Setas focus**

While he was still awaiting a full list of responsibilities to be delegated to him by Minister Buti Manamela, Cassim said his responsibilities would be centred on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and the many challenges plaguing the student financing programme.

In a statement released on Thursday afternoon, the department acknowledged Cassim’s involvement in raising students’ concerns directly with the NSFAS administration, including delays in the programme’s vetting process and payments to students, and how these extended delays were adversely affecting qualifying students.

Cassim said he wanted to have another look at the NSFAS and Sector Education and Training Authorities (Setas) models and how they could better benefit students.

“As the deputy minister of higher education, I do not claim to have all the answers or powers.

“But I can assure you that I am not here to cut ribbons. I am not interested in a ceremonial position. There are more important and pressing matters to fill my diary with.

“I will continue to advocate relentlessly for access and success for all South Africans in the higher education and training sector.”

### Divisive rhetoric

During the Press Club event, after outlining what he would like to achieve in his new position, Cassim was asked about the derogatory statements made at his expense after the announcement of his appointment earlier this month.

“There is a bigger issue at play here. My personal political philosophy is shaped by my upbringing. I have mixed with South Africans of all cultures and religions, and I saw the beauty of who we are and what connects us.

“But there is a rising tide of divisive political rhetoric, not just in South Africa but across the world.

“And the political parties and the politicians that divide us do so not because they care about the communities they claim to represent. They perpetuate a ‘divide and conquer’ tactic, where they profit politically by dividing South Africans. We have to reject this.”

Referring to his traditional Islamic attire, Cassim said it could not be acceptable that his outfit and appearance opened him up to discrimination.

“I don’t do this for the cameras. Look back, and you will see this is something that I have worn for many years as part of my personal connection to my faith.

“When I choose to connect with my faith, why does that make me look like a foreign national?

“I don’t want my children to feel like they do not belong in South Africa. And I am 100% a South African. In fact, if you trace my heritage, you will find generations and generations of South Africans making a contribution to our nation.

“We have a choice to make as a nation. Either we take the very difficult hike up the mountain of unity, or we easily sink down into the pits of division,” Cassim said. **DM**