Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Categories
UFS News Media Release Research
Years
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Months
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Previous Archive
14 April 2021 | Story Dr Nitha Ramnath
Thought-leader series: corruption
2021 UFS Thought-Leader Webinar Series 

PRESENTS

a webinar on 

CORRUPTION IN SOUTH AFRICA: THE ENDEMIC PANDEMIC

As a public higher-education institution in South Africa with a responsibility to contribute to public discourse, the University of the Free State (UFS) will be presenting the webinar as part of the Free State Literature Festival’s online initiative, VrySpraak-digitaal. The aim of the webinar series is to discuss issues facing South Africa by engaging experts at the university and in South Africa. Some of the topics for 2021 include, among others, reimagining universities for student success; corruption; local elections, the state of business – particularly in the Free State. 

In 2020, the webinar series saw the successful participation of leading experts engaging on COVID-19 and the crisis facing the country socially, economically, and politically. This year, in lieu of the Free State Arts Festival, the UFS will present the webinar virtually over a period of five months. 

Second webinar presented on 4 May 2021

The second webinar for 2021 forms part of the UFS Thought-Leader Series, which is in its fourth year running. The scourge of corruption in South Africa has become endemic at all levels of the state and has rapidly accelerated the nation’s descent from a position of credibility that it once occupied during the era of Nelson Mandela. The economy is damaged; many state-owned enterprises are rendered dysfunctional, while self-enrichment by some political party cadres continues unabated at the peril of stark poverty and deepening inequality of the broader population. 
Are there grounds for optimism for South Africans who have been deeply wounded by the state of the nation? 

Date: Tuesday 4 May 2021
Topic:  Corruption in South Africa: the endemic pandemic 
Time: 12:30-14:00
RSVP: Alicia Pienaar, pienaaran1@ufs.ac.za by 2 May 2021 

Facilitator:

Rector and Vice-Chancellor, UFS

Panellists:

Director, Institute for Accountability in Southern Africa
Campaigning as Accountability Now 


Former Judge at the High Court, Cape Town

Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions, National Prosecuting Authority

Dean: Faculty of Law, University of the Free State

Bios of speakers:

Adv Paul Hoffman
Advocate Paul Hoffman SC, a native of Johannesburg and a Wits graduate, practised law at the sidebar from 1975 to 1980 and at the Cape bar from 1980 to 2006. He took silk in 1995 and acted on the Cape bench at the invitation of three successive judge presidents. After retiring from the bar, he was founding director of the Centre for Constitutional Rights, and in 2009 co-founder of Accountability Now – both NGOs that promote constitutionalism. He is best known for his work on the irregularities in the arms deals, the unconstitutionality of the Hawks, and the bread cartel case in which a general class action was developed by the courts. He is the author of many articles and one book, Confronting the Corrupt, published by Tafelberg.

Judge Dennis Davis
Judge Dennis Davis is a retired judge in South Africa’s high court. He was educated at the Herzlia School and the Universities of Cape Town and Cambridge; and served as judge of the High Court, Cape Town (since 1998) and Judge President of the Competition Appeal Court (since February 2000). He is honorary professor at the Universities of Cape Town, the Western Cape, Wits, and is an extraordinary professor in the University of the Free State Centre for Human Rights. He is also Chair of the Davis Tax Committee and was one of the drafters of the Competition Act 1998 and the Companies Act 2008. He authored 11 books and held visiting professorial posts at the universities of Toronto, Melbourne, Harvard, Florida Brown, Georgetown and New York University. 


Adv Ouma Rabaji-Rasethaba
Advocate Ouma Rabaji-Rasethaba currently serves as the Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions responsible for the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) within the National Prosecuting Authority. She is the national co-ordinator of the anti-corruption strategic objective in the NPA (coordinating priorities for the Specialised Commercial Crime Unit, Investigating Directorate, and Asset Forfeiture Unit within the NPA). Adv Rabaji was admitted as an attorney in 1990, and later as an advocate of the High Court in 1996. She was previously Special Director of the AFU during its formative years, after which she joined the corporate sector in the area of governance and risk, followed by the bar, and practising as an advocate before re-joining the AFU in 2020.

Prof John Mubangizi
Prof John Mubangizi is Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of the Free State. He has been full professor for more than 16 years. From 2005 to 2007, he served as Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). After that, he served as Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Law and Management Studies at UKZN for 10 years. Rated as an established researcher by the National Research Foundation, Prof Mubangizi is widely published, with more than 70 publications to his name – most in SAPSE-accredited peer-reviewed journals – as well as a book titled The Protection of Human Rights in South Africa: A Legal and Practical Guide, which is used by scholars, practitioners, and students of human rights law in South Africa. He has also presented more than 40 academic papers at international conferences.  Prof Mubangizi is a member of the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) and has served as member and adviser to the ASSAf Council. He was also Chairperson of the Higher Education Quality Committee of South Africa and member of the Council on Higher Education. He also serves on various committees and in different ad hoc positions at institutional, national, and international levels.

News Archive

UV vestig hom afgelope eeu as leier op verskeie terreine
2004-05-11

Michelle O'Connor - Volksblad - 11 Mei 2004

Ondank terugslae nou 'n 'gesonde volwassene'

HOEWEL die Universiteit van die Vrystaat (UV) vanjaar sy eeufees vier en met 23 000 studente die grootste universiteit in die sentrale deel van die land is, was dié instelling se geboorte glad nie maklik nie. MICHELÉ O'CONNOR het met prof. Frederick Fourie, rektor, oor die nederige begin van dié instelling gesels.

DIE behoefte aan 'n eie universiteit in die Vrystaat het reeds in 1855, kort ná die stigting van Grey-kollege, kop uitgesteek.

Grey se manne het hulleself teen 1890 begin voorberei om die intermediêre B.A.-eksamens af te lê. Dié eksamen het hulle toegang gegee tot die tweede jaar van 'n B.A.-graad aan die destydse University of the Cape Good Hope, nou die Universiteit van Kaapstad.

"Presidente F.W. Reitz en M.T. Steyn het destyds albei die stigting van 'n universiteit hier bepleit. Die grootste rede was sodat die seuns van die Vrystaat nie weggestuur word nie.

"Dié twee se droom is op 28 Januarie 1904 bewaarheid toe ses studente hulle onder dr. Johannes Bril, as hoof/rektor van Grey-kollege, vir die graad B.A. ingeskryf het. Dié graad is aanvanklik deur die Kaapse universiteit toegeken.

"Net die klassieke tale soos Latyns en Grieks, die moderne tale, Nederlands, Duits en Engels, filosofie, geskiedenis, wiskunde, fisika, chemie, plant- en dierkunde is aanvanklik aangebied.

"Die UV se geboue het gegroei van 'n klein tweevertrek-geboutjie wat nou naby Huis Abraham Fischer staan, en verblyf in die Grey-kollege se seunskoshuis," sê Fourie.

Volgens hom is die universiteit se eerste raad en senaat tussen 1904 en 1920 saamgestel. Die eerste dosente is aangestel en die eerste geboue opgerig. "Dié tyd was egter baie moeilik.

"Die instelling het teen 1920 net 100 studente gehad en was geldelik in die knyp. Daar was geen vaste rektor nie en geen vooruitgang nie. Vrystaatse kinders is steeds na ander universiteite gestuur.

"Ds. J.D. Kestell, rektor van 1920 tot 1927, het egter dié instelling finaal gevestig.

"Hy het self studente van oor die hele Vrystaat gewerf en geld by onder meer kerke en banke ingesamel. Kestell het selfs Engelse ouers oortuig om hul kinders na die Greyuniversiteitskollege (GUK) te stuur en teen 1927 het dié instelling met 400 studente gespog.

"In die tydperk tussen 1927 en 1950 het die GUK weer verskeie terugslae beleef.

"In dié tyd was dit onder meer die Groot Depressie en die Tweede Wêreldoorlog. Die armblanke-vraagstuk het regstreeks op studente en dosente ingewerk en die politieke onderstrominge van dié tyd het die instelling ontwrig.

"Die GUK het egter oorleef en die Universiteitskollege van die Oranje-Vrystaat (UKOVS) is in 1935 gebore," sê Fourie.

Hy sê in dié tyd is verskeie fakulteite gevestig en teen 1950 het die UKOVS met 1 000 studente gespog.

Teen 1950 het dit 'n onafhanklike universiteit geword en die naam is verander na die Universiteit van die OranjeVrystaat (UOVS).

Dié tydperk is gekenmerk deur Afrikaner- en blanke selfvertroue en heerskappy. Studentegetalle het tot 7 000 in 1975 gegroei en heelwat vooruitgang het in dié tyd plaasgevind.

"Tussen 1976 en 1989 sukkel dieuniversiteit weer met onder meer ekonomiese krisisse, die land se politieke onstabiliteit en word die UOVS geï soleer.

"Een ligpunt in dié tyd is die toelating van die eerste swart studente, die nuwe Sasol-biblioteek en die fakulteit teologie wat die lig sien.

"Tussen 1990 en vanjaar het die UOVS verskeie op- en afdraandes beleef. Die universiteit doen nie net die eerste stappe van transformasie nie, maar begin ook aan 'n beleid van multikulturaliteit werk.

"Die UOVS se naam verander in 1996 na die Universiteit van die Vrystaat/University of the Free State en in 2001 word die Sotho-vertaling bygevoeg.

"Geldelike druk en probleme neem drasties toe en personeel word gerasionaliseer.

"Teen 2000 begin die UV met 'n draaistrategie en studentegetalle neem tot meer as 23 000 toe," sê Fourie.

Hy sê die UV het die afgelope eeu nie net verskeie terugslae oorleef nie, maar homself ook op verskeie gebiede as 'n leier gevestig.

Die universiteit behaal sy eie geldelike mikpunte, neem 'n nuwe taalbeleid van veeltaligheid aan en herbelê in personeel.

Die instelling inkorporeer die kampusse van die Vista- en Qwaqwa-universiteit en groei internasionaal.

Die UV vestig ook fondamente van 'n institusionele kultuur van verdraagsaamheid, geregtigheid en diversiteit.

"Die baba het in die afgelope eeu 'n gesonde volwassene geword."

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept