Fourie report: allegations against Rector unfounded
Prof Wim de Villiers, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of Stellenbosch University, has been exonerated after an investigation into allegations that he had attempted to interfere in the Constitutional Court litigation related to the SU 2016 Language Policy by trying to convince Justice Edwin Cameron to accept the nomination for the election of the SU Chancellor.
Judge Burton Fourie found that 'there was no evidence to support a finding that the conduct of the Rector in regards to the nomination of Justice Cameron for the position of Chancellor of Stellenbosch University, constituted a serious violation of the law or serious misconduct'.
Judge Fourie's report was tabled at the last Council meeting of the year on 2 December. Read the full report here.
In the report, he writes:
“In my view, the [above] facts and circumstances, and in particular the conduct of the Rector, do not, when viewed holistically, give rise to a reasonable apprehension of bias on the part of Justice Cameron due to influence brought to bear upon him by Prof De Villiers. At best the evidence shows that the Rector, as he was duty-bound to do so, assisted – probably even taking the lead in identifying suitable candidates for the nomination of a new Chancellor.