Zimpapers Logo

Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Correspondent
THE National University of Science and Technology’s first Vice-Chancellor Professor Phineas Makhurane has said there has been “no infrastructural development’’ at the university since 2004 when he left the institution.

He said the lack of development was stifling the teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Prof Makhurane was speaking yesterday on the sidelines of the first memorial of the late former Nust Vice-Chancellor Prof Lindela Rowland Ndlovu at the university.

He said since his departure nothing concrete has happened in terms of construction work adding that even the late Prof Ndlovu has left and the situation is not improving.

Prof Makhurane made a passionate appeal to President Mugabe and Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Prof Jonathan Moyo to ensure Nust receives funds to complete construction projects.

Nust, he said, has become synonymous with towering cranes as construction has long ceased with some of its buildings becoming dilapidated.

“I’m appealing to Jonathan Moyo and to President Robert Mugabe that, let’s give a little bit of money to Nust to complete the construction of these buildings,” said Prof Makhurane.

“You see there are only seven buildings on this campus right now. They are supposed to be 27. They are all planned and the sewer systems are all there. These are Government projects.  The Government should finish constructing these projects,” said Prof Makhurane.

He said since 2004 Nust has not made significant development.

“When I left all the buildings that you see were there. We used to get an intervention from the Government every year. We were given so many millions for construction, so many millions for running the university itself. But they have stopped giving universities money,” he said.

Prof Makhurane said the lack of development at Nust was depressing him.

He said the university had been reduced to a commerce enrolling institution.

“Sometimes I feel like volunteering to come back to Nust and just be given the responsibility of raising funds for Nust to be completed. Right now the only faculty that is growing is the Faculty of Commerce. We have over 3 000 commerce students. That is the only one that is growing because it’s cheaper,” said Prof Makhurane.

He said the Government’s decentralisation of universities was the other reason why construction projects were being stalled.

“I think the main problem is that there was too much devolution. They decided that they must have a university in every province. As a result the universities are not benefiting. Places like Nust just stopped growing with no money coming in from Treasury. For how long can we have cranes towering in the sky?” he said.

The Government’s policy states that each of the country’s 10 provinces must have a university, a vocational training centre and a teachers’ college.
Matabeleland North is the only province without a teacher’s training college.

Prof Makhurane described the late Prof Ndlovu as an academic par excellence saying his works speak volumes about him.

He urged academics to celebrate their departed colleagues saying they have been very shy in doing so.

Prof Makhurane told the audience at the memorial how he tracked the late academic to Canada and invited him to join them at the University of Zimbabwe.

Other speakers lauded their relationship with the late professor, saying he never wanted to be a boss but a leader to his colleagues.

His friends shared their personal experiences with him saying Prof Ndlovu enjoyed partying while his former students respected him as the most published and cited scholar to date in the country.

He said his research competitiveness now stands at $3 million.

“His publications have been cited 1 156 times and are the highest as at this morning (yesterday morning). For instance at Nust he is the most highly cited academic. The one who follows him has only 345 citations and the highly cited academic at University of Zimbabwe has 709 citations,” said one of his former student Mr Zephaniah Dhlamini, who heads the university’s Applied Genetic Testing Centre.

@nqotshili