UNANSWERED AND UNSPOKEN: NWU’S SILENCE ON SUSPENSION OF SCC STUDENT LEADER

Mhlengi Khumalo & Abygail Smit

@into.mbiyakwakhumalo & @Abysmit06 

 

Tshepiso Tau has been suspended as chairperson of the Students’ Campus Council (SCC) for the Potchefstroom Campus at North-West University (NWU) and subsequently also as Secretary-General of the Students’ Representative Council (SRC), only six weeks after being elected. While the official reasons for Tau’s suspension remain unclear, two students have made allegations of electoral misconduct to Wapad.

 

The student community was notified of the suspension in an email on Friday, 31 October, by the Registrar, Professor Marlene Verhoef, and the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (DVC): Student Life, Transformation, People and Culture, Professor Sonia Swanepoel.

 

The email stated that Tau was suspended “in accordance with paragraph 17.2 of the Institutional Rules on Student Governance (2025)” and that it “follows the conclusion of disciplinary processes conducted in accordance with paragraph 12 of the NWU Manual on Student Discipline,” but offered no further detail.

 

When Wapad approached the NWU’s Director of Corporate Communications, Mr Louis Jacobs, to ascertain the specific nature of the allegations that led to Tau’s suspension, he declined to elaborate. Jacobs said, “The information shared with the broader student community [the 31 October email] remains the official comment of the NWU. This is a matter between the parties involved and no further information will be supplied. As indicated in the statement shared, the student community will be updated on the matter upon the conclusion of the relevant appeal or review process in terms of the university rules.”

 

Tau did not respond to a request for comment. However, independent accounts obtained by Wapad detail allegations of irregularities during the election period that could reasonably constitute the type of misconduct leading to suspension.

 

The Institutional Rules on Student Governance provide clear directives regarding the consequences of a suspension. Paragraph 17.2, for instance, details the operational outcome of a suspension — explaining what happens to a member’s duties — but it does not specify the grounds for suspension itself. The rule states that a suspended member relinquishes all responsibilities and university resources until the conclusion of any appeal or review. If the review finds the member guilty, their membership is terminated; if found innocent, they return to their duties. In line with this procedure, Deputy Chairperson Relebogile Moremi has been appointed acting chairperson. However, Moremi also did not respond to Wapad’s request for an interview about her new position.

 

Two students have come forward with details of events during the election period. Their names are known to Wapad but will not be made public at their request.

 

One student recounted how Tau came to her room asking if she had voted. When she replied that she had not, he offered to “help” and asked for her phone. After she had difficulty logging in, she alleges that Tau took the device from her.

 

“I was expecting him to give me back my phone and ask for my vote properly,” she stated. “I’m obligated to vote for whoever I want.” Instead, she claims he began the voting process himself, selecting his own name first for the chairperson position. She alleges he then proceeded to vote for other candidates on his slate, only showing her the phone near the end while making comments like, “I’m not going to vote for this one… she doesn’t campaign for me.”

 

Another student shared a similar account. She was asleep in her room when Tau and a female companion knocked. While Tau engaged her roommate, the female companion confronted the student at her doorway. The student claims the woman, stating she was “helping,” took her phone and began casting a vote. “Obviously, for chairperson, we’re voting for our guy,” the woman allegedly said, selecting Tau.

 

The student confirmed that the companion only asked for her input after most votes had been cast. She also noted seeing a group of four to five individuals in matching political t-shirts moving door-to-door in the residence. Both students later learned that candidates were reportedly not permitted to campaign in this manner or interfere with the voting process.

 

According to the Institutional Rules on Student Governance, paragraph 11.1 (“Prohibited voting conduct”), “During the voting period, no candidate, student support group or student may influence or attempt to influence student voter conduct or decisions through the issuing of gifts, incentives, privileges, promotional materials, access rights, or similar benefits. No candidate or student support group may erect, set up or make available a voter centre or space or make available equipment for eligible student voters to cast their votes, regardless of whether this is done on university-owned or controlled premises or not. Each student voter is required to safeguard their credentials granting them access to the voting site (including their student number and unique password) and may not share this with other student voters or candidates. No student voter, candidate or student support group may vote on behalf of another student.”

 

This adds to the impression that students are being left in the dark about the reasons for Tau’s suspension or the extent of the allegations against him. For now, the university’s formal review process, as governed by the Institutional Rules, is expected to shed more light on the matter — and, hopefully, restore confidence in the integrity of the institution’s democratic processes.

 

 

Edited by Simoné de Witt and Lindiwe Rasemetsa