STATEMENT OF WSU COUNCIL FOLLOWING THE MEETING OF 8 APRIL 2022

1. The Walter Sisulu University Council met on 8 April 2022. Among the items for discussion was the accreditation status of programmes offered by the University in light of recent media reports questioning the validity of some programmes offered by the We have decided to write directly the community of WSU, to signal the importance of the issue at hand.
2. The utmost priority of Council is to protect the interests of every student at all times. No student must be prejudiced in circumstances where they are not at fault. At the same time, the University must ensure that it complies with the rules and regulations which apply to the accreditation of programmes. It is not in the interests of any student that they are allowed to graduate in a programme which has no legal standing.
3. The Council welcomed the recent media statement by the Council on Higher Education (CHE), recording the views of the CHE, the Department of Higher Education and the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) refuting the claims that “thousands” of WSU qualifications may not be accredited.
4. Council is confident of the quality and standing of the academic progranwes offered by WSU. The affected programmes, which the University has since identified, must be addressed and their standing regularized. In this regard, Council has been advised that management has constituted a task team to pay specific attention to the status of each of the affected programmes.
5. The Council expressed its grave concern about the allegation that the University has offered (and may continue to offer programmes) without ensuring first that these arefully accredited. In Council’s view any decision to offer an unaccredited programme brings the University into disrepute; places the future of many students in jeopardy; and is damaging to the standing of the higher education sector, as a whole.
6. To this end, Council noted the report from current management noting that some of the accreditation issues are inherited from the past. Council, however, stressed the need for accountability with the current leadership of the institution to take responsibility for the challenges and attend to them as a matter of extreme emergency. Any failure to bring about a speedy and sustainable solution can potentially cause unrest among the various constituents served by the University, including students and alumni.
7. Management has assured Council that it is presently engaged with the authorities, specifically the CHE, to bring about a sustainable solution to the challenges of programmes which have been identified as potentially affected. Council will also keep a monitoring eye to the situation, through a specially constituted sub-committee, which includes academics, non-academic staff and students, and the Chairperson of Council. Council will allow management space and time to engage with CHE, DHET and SAQA to resolve the issues of accreditation, expeditiously and in due regard of the need to protect the best interests of the students.
8. We shall be holding a special council meeting at the end of April 2022 to consider progress in the discussions with the CHE.
9. While an official response from CHE is awaited, we have impressed upon management to find a ‘WSU solution’ to the problem, which could take multiple forms, including partnerships with sister universities; considering late graduations in the affected programmes, during the second semester of 2022; and re-assigning students from the affected programmes to programmes which do not face accreditation challenges. This must draw on the skills, experiences and talents of WSU employees, and students. in particular, the students, academic and non-academic staff must be fully consulted in the development and design of any proposed solutions.
10. To protect the academic integrity of WSU, Council is clear on the single foundational rule: No student of WSU must be registered or allowed to graduate in any programme, without the CHE, DFtET or SAQA written approvals, having been obtained. Any breach of this rule will be construed as gross dereliction of duty attracting appropriatesanction.
    

Issued by Adv. Tembeka Ngcukaitobi

SC Chairperson of Council

Walter Sisulu University