UCT Alumni, vote to promote the principles of liberty on the UCT Council!

UCT Alumni! Vote for promoting the principles of liberty to the Council! 

The University of Cape Town is holding elections for its Council for 4 years from 2024 to 2028.

In the past decade UCT has been the site of assaults on free speech that came to the fore in the Rhodes Must Fall campaign and is currently heightened by the anti-semitic nature of many of the pro-Palestinian protests.

UCT has been rocked by scandals pertaining to mismanagement, which resulted in the departure of the Vice-Chancellor, Mamokgethi Phakeng who took ‘early retirement and ceased to occupy the position of Vice-Chancellor of the university with effect 03 March 2023’.

The Council is the governing body of the university - the highest decision making body at UCT. It is constituted according to the the Higher Education Act, 1997, and the University of Cape Town Statute.

‘Its responsibilities include determining the mission, objectives, goals, strategies and policies for the progress of the institution. It must also ensure an environment conducive to efficient, effective, economical and ethical attainment of these goals.

‘It has the responsibility of maintaining and ensuring a financially secure, healthy and viable environment and accounting for all decisions taken at UCT, including the submission of the required reports and documents to the Minister of Education.’

Of the 30 members of Council, four (4) are elected by Convocation, which is the body comprising all the graduates of the university.  Convocation comprises all graduates, holders of diplomas and credit-bearing certificates, the vice-chancellor, the deputy vice-chancellors, the academic staff, and former professors and associate professors elected by the Senate to the rank of emeritus .

UCT has commenced its Council Elections for 2024 as the existing Council’s term ends on 30 June 2024.

The Alumni have a direct impact on the future of the university and in this election there are 4 alumni nominees whose ethos reflects classical liberal principles, including freedom of speech and association.

For the FSU SA, the presence of such nominees on the council is crucial to bringing  the influence of the principles of liberty to the Council.   

The 4 nominees are Professor Brian Cantor, Advocate Mark Oppenheimer, CEO of the Free Market Foundation, David Ansara and Legal Academic, Kelly Phelps.

The election is now live until 23 April 2024. Go to convocationelection@uct.ac.za now for more information and to cast your vote.

Help advance the influence of the principles of liberty to a world-class, iconic South African institution!