Western Cape, Cape Town in particular, seems to revel in controversy. If it’s not the open toilet saga, it’s the uncalled for refugee comments, or the provincial government’s lackadaisical approach to bloody gang wars on the Cape Flats. All of them have race either as a subtext or a dominant theme somewhere featuring prominently.
Now, par for the course, the University of Cape has entered the fray. The highly regarded institution recently diluted its student race-baed quota admissions requirements, a move perceived by some as a disguised step towards closing its doors to previously disadvantaged. The development is likely to reinforce the perception that leading institutions in the “The City that works” are opposed to transformation.
The move has stirred a hornet’s nest in some quarters. An official from the Department of Higher Education and Training informed Transform SA that the Department was “looking into the issue”. She could not elaborate further.