AfriForum Youth offers legal aid to Puk student leader who was unfairly removed from SCC
15 February 2023
AfriForum Youth stepped in to assist a member of the Student Campus Council (SCC) of the North-West University’s Potchefstroom Campus (Puk) with legal aid after she was removed from her position. The youth organisation sees this as an attempt by the university to cover up racial exclusion and create the illusion that they did take real action.
Beàtha Groenewald, the Puk’s former SCC secretary, did not agree with the decision that students from town residences would be excluded from the Puk’s welcoming function on the basis of their racial composition. Shortly after she took a stand against racial exclusion at the NWU, her term as SCC member was terminated under suspicious circumstances.
The campus student council announced on Tuesday that Groenewald was removed from her position after a motion of no confidence was brought against her. The reasons given for this include that she did not fulfil her duties as an SCC member and that she is “guilty of the unauthorized distribution of confidential information to external parties.”
“It is highly suspicious that the Puk, after the media storm over the events of the past weekend, acted so hastily to fire an apparently innocent SCC member. This looks like a desperate attempt by the university to try to create the impression that they are taking action against the serious allegations of racial exclusion. The SCC chairperson, Yikumba Andreas, should also explain what ‘confidential information’ he is referring to, when he accuses her of disseminating it without authorization. It begs the question whether the Puk’s racial agenda is therefore confidential, and anyone who takes a stand against it or talks about it will be quickly identified and punished,” says René van der Vyver, spokesperson for AfriForum Youth.
Groenewald is prepared to put pressure on the Puk to offer a public apology, as well as admit that the events were the result of a racially motivated incident. “The action against me was done on unjust grounds. I was removed from office on the basis that I broke trust with the student council, but the truth is that I tried to stand up for what is right and to try to defend the students, who voted me into this leadership position, against injustice,” says Groenewald.
AfriForum Youth expressed their displeasure on Saturday about town residences that were allegedly excluded from the welcoming function in the amphitheatre due to their lack of diversity. The allegations were immediately investigated by the youth organisation and a letter was sent to Dr. Sibusiso Chalufu, the executive director of student life at the Puk, with important questions about the shocking events. On Tuesday, February 14, the Puk issued a vague media statement about the investigation they themselves conducted. According to the institution, it was found that there was no unlawful exclusion during the welcoming function. The university maintains that the reason for the exclusion was simply due to capacity.
“This is a serious matter and the Puk’s inability to answer our questions is worrying. Among other things, we asked why capacity was a problem this year, while this was not the case in previous years and why students who then gathered outside the amphitheatre for the welcoming function were chased away by a member of management. The Puk’s statement provides an insufficient explanation of the events and leaves stakeholders with even more questions than before,” adds Van der Vyver.
AfriForum Youth does not accept the Puk’s answer and continues with their own investigation.
Issued by René van der Vyver, Spokesperson, AfriForum Youth, 15 February 2023
