Higher education and training minister Buti Manamela has instructed the Vaal University of Technology (VUT) council to explain why allegations about a syndicate selling qualifications were not investigated for more than a year.
This comes after reports that foreigners may have been involved in selling qualifications at the institution, and senior managers allegedly failed to act on evidence from a whistleblower.
Manamela said he was “disturbed” by the suggestion credible information had been ignored.
“It is unacceptable for allegations of this magnitude, which threaten the integrity of our national qualifications framework, to be met with administrative delays,” he said.
He said if VUT management had known about the allegations for a year, “simply ‘investigating’” is no longer enough.
“We need to know why the perpetrators were supposedly left in the system to potentially corrupt the 2026 intake.”
The minister has written to the VUT council chairperson and demanded a preliminary report by Friday.
Manamela has requested an explanation for the delay, proof that “consequence management” is under way and detailed urgent steps to protect next year’s registration process from manipulation.
Manamela also warned that selling degrees is a criminal offence and said the matter could be referred to the Hawks if the university’s internal processes are not sufficient.
The department said it views the matter in a serious light as it poses a risk to the credibility of the country’s qualifications.
TimesLIVE
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