THE Eastern Cape MEC for Transport, Xolile Nqatha, could be arrested for fraudulent academic records and qualifications.
This was after the Sunday Independent saw a criminal complaint that may soon be forwarded to the law authorities for Nqatha’s arrest.
Nqatha has been accused of registering for a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) without a bachelor’s and honours degree.
The MEC, also responsible for Community Safety and Liaison, allegedly registered for an MPA with the University of Fort Hare in 2017.
He was allegedly supervised by the controversial former professor Edwin Ijeoma, who also assisted and guided Premier Oscar Mabuyane to obtain a PhD without having done any work on the Master’s degree he was irregularly registered for.
It was also alleged that Ijeoma used ghostwriters for Master’s proposals for Nqatha and Mabuyane.
The complainant, who requested to remain anonymous for fear of their lives, alleged that Nqatha and Ijeoma had a business relationship.
This, according to the complainant, happened when Nqatha was the MEC of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta). It was alleged that Ijeoma established the Institute for Development Assistance Management (IDAM) and required funding, which Cogta was seemingly willing to support with the help of Nqatha, who was at the helm at the time.
According to open-source information published on the Eastern Cape provincial website, Nqatha matriculated from Mzoxolo High School, currently known as Jongile Nompondo High School in Mlungisi Township.
He holds a diploma in labour relations from Global Business Solution, a certificate in advanced human resources management, and an Industrial Relations certificate from Rhodes University. He also holds a certificate in a project management course and another certificate in journalism training from Rhodes University and Eastern Cape News Development Agency.
Fort Hare did not respond to questions sent to them.
Eastern Cape Transport spokesperson Unathi Binqose said the questions regarding Nqatha should be referred to his spokesperson, Makhaya Komisa, who did not respond.
There was little progress on Nqatha’s Master’s degree during the first two years of his registration. Significant movement only began in around 2019 when Ijeoma became Nqatha’s academic supervisor, according to the document.
“In addition to Nqatha and Mabuyane both being registered during the same period and both being supervised by Ijeoma, they have also been closely associated in the Eastern Cape Legislature for several years,” the complainant said.
The complainant said that Nqatha had made no further effort to work on or even obtain his Master’s degree since Ijeoma was terminated from the university.
“However, the net effect of Nqatha's alleged dishonesty is problematic since Nqatha is a political leader.”
She said the conduct undermined the integrity of the educational system, adding that it not only diminished the value of legitimate academic credentials earned through dedication and effort, but the ripple effect was that future generations may well believe that dishonesty and shortcuts were acceptable paths to power.
She said this also weakened the foundations of ethical leadership and directly impacts societal norms.
“The overall effect is that academic fraud is rife in the university, and there are most likely more politicians and other students that are involved in this scheme, and it needs to be properly fleshed out by law enforcement,” she said.
The Sunday Independent last week reported how Ijeoma used a fake master’s degree from a bogus university to get a PhD at the University of Pretoria.
Ijeoma claimed he had a postgraduate Master of Business Administration Marketing degree from Kensington University (KU) in Honolulu, Hawaii. However, the university was never accredited as a degree-conferring institution.
He resigned in February 2021 following his suspension.
The complainant also added that there appeared to be little appetite to address the “real“ issues, which has seen political individuals, in essence, being ”protected” from facing the music. This protection has been extended to Mabuyane and others.
“Yet, despite their identities and involvement being known to several law enforcement agencies since at least 2021, the professor (Ijeoma) who allegedly facilitated this academic fraud, the students, and the ghostwriting team have not been held to account.”
On Wednesday, the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education called on the councils of Fort Hare and the University of Limpopo to strengthen administrative capacity to deter corruption.
The committee’s chairperson, Tebogo Letsie, said Fort Hare was not in good shape, and it has not submitted its audited financial statements for money that was appropriated to it from Vote 17, which is Higher Education and Training, and therefore these funds remain unaccounted for.
manyane.manyane@inl.co.za