Blade shreds imposters

Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande wants the police to take the issue of fake qualifications seriously.

Nzimande said yesterday he was planning to raise his concerns with the growing problem of passing off fake qualifications with criminal justice authorities.

This comes only days after ANC stalwart Pallo Jordan quit Parliament and offered to step down from all positions he holds in the ruling party after the Sunday Times revealed he had lied about having obtained a doctorate from the London School of Economics.

"I have noted with concern the increasing incidence of qualifications fraud in the country. This is completely unacceptable and poses a danger to the credibility of our education system," the minister said.

Earlier this month, Tembakazi Mnyaka quit her job as chairman of the SA National Roads Agency after she was questioned about her master's degree in town planning from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

Hlaudi Motsoeneng was recently appointed to the position of SABC chief operations officer despite Public Protector Thuli Madonsela finding he had lied about having passed matric.

Nzimande said it appeared there were sophisticated fake qualification "production mills" in operation, with unscrupulous people willing to pay for falsified credentials. He lamented the casual manner in which some people treated the issue of forged qualifications and doctored CVs.

"We call upon all South Africans to be as intolerant of these, like all other types of fraud and corruption," he said.

He urged employers in the public and private sector to report suspected cases to the police.