THE University of South Africa (Unisa) has called out three Malawian nationals for trying to pull a Dr Matthew Lani on it.
This after the three faked their graduation ceremony and even awarded themselves honorary doctorates they claimed came from Unisa.
In an 18-seconds video trending on social media, Malawian socialite Pemphero Mphande, Malawian musician Patience Namadingo and Mansoor Sharif Karim can be seen in a hall wearing red gowns as if they are graduating.
Mphande went as far as taking a photo on Unisa premises and writing a message of gratitude before the institution called him and his counterparts as liars.
However, Unisa denied conferring the three with any honorary doctorates.
The university said they became aware through social media posts and media queries that the Malawian socialites claimed to have received honorary doctorates from the university in 2020, 2021 and 2023 respectively.
“Unisa wishes to state categorically that it has not conferred any such degrees on the trio, and that any assertion to this effect is simply not true.
ALSO READ | Woman moered for wetting floor
“These three individuals are also not among the candidates considered and approved for the awarding of honorary doctorates in 2020, 2021 and 2023. Neither have they ever been nominated, considered or approved for such honours at any period whatsoever. No honorary degrees were awarded in 2022,” said Unisa’s acting registrar, Professor Moloko Sepota.
Sepota further said the certificates displayed by Mphande and Namadingo, respectively, are not Unisa certificates.
“As a university, we distance ourselves from these false claims and condemn in the strongest terms the misuse of the Unisa name for fraudulent conduct. Relevant officials within the university have been directed to investigate this matter and ensure that these individuals are held to account and made to retract any false claims,” said Sepota.
Addressing Unisa’s claims, Mphande said he was contacted by individuals earlier this year who, according to him, had been awarding honorary doctorates on behalf of Unisa and said they felt they could recognise their work.
“These individuals have previously recognised others at ceremonies held on Unisa campus and other campuses. I was recognised at a well patronised ceremony alongside other individuals from Zimbabwe, Botswana, Congo, South Africa and Nigeria. This ceremony was organised and conducted by the same individuals who have been doing this for years,” he said.
Mphande said if Unisa is denying this today, either they are a part of the scam or they too are being scammed.
“Our team will investigate and would love to meet with officials from Unisa to understand how this happened under their nose for years,” he said.
