Durban – Three staff unions, representing just under 50% of the staff at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, have threatened to strike next year unless the executive managers who last year – it has now emerged, falsely – accused the vice-chancellor of racism and misconduct are suspended.
In a letter to the chair of the university’s council, Dr Ayanda Ntsaluba, the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union, National Tertiary Education Union and the University of KwaZulu-Natal Staff Union last week said staff were becoming disillusioned with the slow action regarding the outcome of the board of inquiry set up to investigate the allegations against the vice-chancellor, Dr Albert van Jaarsveld.
Last month, The Mercury reported that the inquiry had found that the allegations had no basis.
“This is being perceived as a lack of resolve to deal with the issue of the false allegations against the vice-chancellor,” the letter read.
The unions said the vast majority of staff believed those who had made the allegations should not remain at UKZN. “If they cannot do the honourable thing and resign, then disciplinary action must follow and urgently,” they said.
The university had been rendered dysfunctional and if the executive managers were to remain, this would continue, the unions said in the letter.
They said the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration had already issued a strike certificate and if they were to embark on strike action, it would be protected. They were going to ballot their members, unless the council could provide assurance that the executive managers in question would be suspended and disciplinary action would follow.
Ntsaluba told The Mercury he did not want to respond to every concerned university stakeholder through the media on this issue.
“I am satisfied that council is handling this matter appropriately thus far,” he said. “I had undertaken to update the university at the appropriate time and this we will done.”
He said he respected that different university constituencies would hold varied opinions on how the issue should be handled.
“However, council has a process it is following and will follow.”
Last November, The Sunday Times reported in a “strongly worded, five-page” letter leaked to the media seven executive managers had made allegations against the vice-chancellor. It was signed by four professors as well as the director of corporate relations, the then chief financial officer and the executive director of student services.
In December, Ntsaluba announced an independent, three- person board of inquiry would be appointed to investigate the matter. Then this October his office announced to the UKZN community that the vice-chancellor had been cleared of the allegations.
Earlier this month, The Mercury reported that the council had apparently appointed a lawyer to recommend what action should be taken against the original complainants.
In a document leaked to the newspaper and purporting to be the lawyer’s report, it was recommended that five of them be suspended and that the university would either allow them the opportunity to engage in reconciliation efforts with the vice-chancellor or disciplinary action would be instituted against them.
Of the other two, one’s contract had already expired and the other’s contract was set to expire this month.
The document recommended that no action be taken against either of them.