Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training chairperson Tebogo Letsie says Parliament will seek clarity from the minister on NSFAS leadership gaps, payment systems, and whether students will continue receiving financial support without disruption.
Image: Parliament RSA/Supplied
Parliament has raised concerns over governance instability at the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) following the resignation of interim chairperson Dr Mugwena Maluleke, leaving questions over the institution’s ability to function and meet its statutory obligations.
Portfolio Committee on Higher Education chairperson Tebogo Letsie said Parliament had received communication from Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela confirming Maluleke’s resignation, alongside other board departures that could affect quorum and the legal standing of the board.
“We are writing to him to explain further the reasons that would have made the chair to resign and other members who would have resigned. What are the issues? Because ours is about making sure that, moving forward, we don’t have a problem, this problem recurring again,” Letsie said.
He said the committee would also seek clarity on how NSFAS would continue to meet its obligations to students amid the governance uncertainty, including the payment of allowances, tuition and accommodation.
“We’d want him to come back to us and show us or give us an assurance of how we’re going to make sure that allowances are paid to students, tuition is paid to universities, and accommodation is paid,” he said.
Letsie said the committee was concerned that NSFAS was still operating with acting leadership in key executive positions, adding that instability at management level compounded governance concerns.
“We know that, as we speak currently, we have an acting CEO, we have an acting COO at NSFAS. We are also not yet stable,” he said.
He also referred to concerns raised through oversight processes, including reports linked to the Auditor-General, which pointed to possible irregularities in the system, including cases where beneficiaries were flagged as deceased while payments may have been processed.
“The AG has indicated that there’s potential ghost students at NSFAS, where the system has found over 8,000 beneficiaries who are recorded as deceased while payments were still being made. Those are billions of rands,” Letsie said.
He cautioned that governance instability and system failures could be interconnected and said Parliament would consider engaging the resigning board members to establish the root cause of the challenges.
“We are going to look at different options. Is it a coincidence or is it forced, and are the big bosses who are controlling these institutions maybe involved?” he said.
He said Parliament could not ignore the developments and would seek further clarity from all parties involved.
“If we can’t get to the bottom of what is the real problem, we’ll move from changing phases at NSFAS, but the problem will persist,” he said.
The Department of Higher Education and Training confirmed that Minister Manamela has accepted Maluleke’s resignation, effective 27 April 2026, with the interim chair citing personal and academic commitments.
Board member Karabo Mohale, who chaired the Human Resources and Organisational Development Committee, has also left the board.
The department said her reflections on institutional challenges, including organisational redesign and governance strengthening, had been noted as part of its assessment of NSFAS.
Ministerial spokesperson Matshepo Seedat said the cumulative impact of resignations had raised serious governance concerns.
“The cumulative effect of these and other resignations has significantly reduced the number of remaining voting members of the Board, raising serious concerns regarding the Board’s ability to continue to constitute itself lawfully and to discharge its statutory and fiduciary responsibilities,” she said.
Seedat said the minister was assessing the legal and governance implications and had begun engaging remaining board members, who have been given an opportunity to make representations on possible steps to stabilise the institution.
She said NSFAS operations, including student funding disbursements, remained unaffected.
“The Minister has emphasised that this step is intended to ensure procedural fairness and to allow for a full and considered assessment before any further action is taken,” she said.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) said the developments reflected a broader governance collapse at NSFAS, warning that continued instability had undermined its ability to function effectively.
DA spokesperson on Higher Education and Training Dr Delmaine Christians said the situation pointed to systemic failure.
“The continued exodus of board members, following earlier resignations this year, has rendered the Board unable to function effectively,” the party said, adding that this raised serious legal and governance concerns.
The DA also pointed to previous reports of financial and administrative weaknesses at NSFAS, including payments to deceased and ineligible beneficiaries, as well as fragmented ICT systems and weak verification processes.
It said NSFAS had reached a point where urgent intervention was unavoidable and called for the reconstitution of the board and stronger accountability measures, adding that it would seek a full briefing in Parliament.
“NSFAS has now reached a point where decisive intervention is unavoidable,” the party said.
The party said these weaknesses were directly affecting students, who were left facing delays in allowances, unsafe or unaccredited accommodation, and uncertainty at the start of each academic year.
It said urgent intervention was needed, including clear timelines for the reconstitution of the NSFAS board and stronger accountability measures for those responsible for repeated failures.
“South Africa cannot afford a student funding system that fails the very people it is meant to support,” the DA said.
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