EFF’s Sihle Lonzi Challenges Reporting on Oscar Mabuyane Court Ruling
EFF Member of Parliament Sihle Lonzi has criticised media coverage of the Bhisho High Court judgment involving Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane, accusing one publication of misrepresenting both the court’s findings and Parliament’s position.
In a public statement, Lonzi said reports claiming the High Court found that Mabuyane lawfully qualified for admission to the University of Fort Hare’s Master of Administration programme were inaccurate.
“The High Court did not find that Oscar Mabuyane met the admission requirements, nor did it declare his admission lawful. It merely set aside the deregistration decision on procedural grounds,” Lonzi said.
He argued that the key issue of whether Mabuyane was lawfully admitted to the programme remains unresolved and must still be determined through the university’s internal processes.
Lonzi also dismissed reports suggesting that Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Higher Education had welcomed the judgment, saying the committee had not adopted any formal position on the matter.
“The Portfolio Committee on Higher Education has not adopted any position on this matter,” he said, adding that comments made by the committee’s chairperson should not be presented as the official view of Parliament.
He further stressed that the court ruling does not affect the ongoing investigation by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) into the circumstances surrounding Mabuyane’s admission and allegations relating to his qualifications.
The Bhisho High Court recently reviewed and set aside the University of Fort Hare’s decision to deregister Mabuyane from its Master of Administration programme, ruling that the university acted unfairly by removing him from the programme without first giving him an opportunity to be heard. The court did not rule on whether Mabuyane met the academic admission requirements.
