SRC’s reaction to the passing of Siyasanga Dlakavu – addressed by Pulane Mtshali
By Emma Olivier
Die Matie attended the second student plenary sitting held in the Engineering Building on 30 April, where Stellenbosch University’s (SU) Students’ Representative Council (SRC) addressed questions and concerns from the student body. The first point on the agenda addressed the lack of acknowledgement for Siyasanga Dlakavu, a first-year BDiv student who passed away on 3 April according to a newsletter from the Division for Student Affairs sent to SU students on 1 May.
SRC Chairperson Pulane Mtshali addressed a prompt concerning the lack of public communication from the SRC regarding Dlakavu’s passing.
The prompt read: “The mandate of the SRC is not only to serve but to also represent registered SU students, as we’ve elected them to. There was no statement posted acknowledging his [Dlakavu’s] passing, nor, at the very least, was there a repost of the initiative to raise funds towards his funeral. To stay silent in the face of the passing of a registered student is appalling and the SRC must account for its silence.”
Solomzi Mphambo, the Speaker of the Student Assembly (left), facilitating the discussion at the second student plenary sitting while SRC Chairperson Pulane Mtshali (right), responds to the first agenda point. Photo: Emma Olivier
Mtshali replied, “The circumstances surrounding Siyasanga’s passing were unclear at the time with a police investigation underway and suspected foul play. The SRC therefore chose to not release a public statement, which could have been speculative and could have potentially compromised the investigation or placed additional emotional strain on Siyasanga’s grieving family, friends and fellow students.”
She added, “Even though we did not publicly communicate through social media, our support extended beyond visible public statements.” She said the SRC organised transport for Siyasanga’s friends to attend the funeral and that SU supported the family financially “which resulted in the funeral service being provided for”.
Mtshali further said the SRC’s priority was the “dignity, privacy and emotional wellbeing of the family over public visibility” and “respecting the sensitivity of the situation”.
SRC Chairperson Pulane Mtshali addressing the matter of the SRC’s response to the recent passing of a SU student, Siyasanga Dlakavu. Photo: Emma Olivier
This agenda point continued past its allocated 10 minutes due to technical difficulties with the microphone, requests about access to the student constitution on the Teams livestream of the sitting, as well as questions from the attendees.
Liyema Langa, member of the Economic Freedom Fighters Youth Command (EFFYC), a registered SU society, asked whether the investigation into Dlakavu’s passing was concluded. Mtshali said that, to her knowledge, it has not been concluded.
A shared sentiment amongst some of the attendees at the sitting was that the point of concern was not necessarily about whether or not the SRC was to divulge information on Dlakavu’s passing, but more about acknowledgement and condolences expected from the SRC.
Mtshali replied that she personally reached out to Dlakavu’s family on behalf of the SRC, but that the SRC would have been the first to release a public statement about his passing. Thus, they decided against posting, to spare the family from possibly being overwhelmed by questions from the public.
Some attendees at the sitting requested an apology from the SRC for the way they handled Dlakavu’s passing and the students’ grief. One of the attendees, Senkosi Nuku, said the SRC had handled the situation “poorly” and asked them to “take accountability”. She said, “We are not asking you to divulge what happened; we are asking you to acknowledge that it did happen.”
Mtshali replied that the SRC “acted out of caution” and “could have still exercised transparency” and “consideration of the grieving students”. She added, “We do acknowledge this and we do express our sincerest apologies.”
Mtshali also clarified that the SRC’s communication is not dependent on the university’s timeline or processes, and thus that they do not need to wait for the university to make announcements.
SRC Vice-Chairperson Emilio Botes added that there was “an emotional aspect” and “pressure to act immediately”. He said, “We have seen what happens when the SRC acts without taking all of the information into account.” He added that “it could have been handled better,” but that he believes the way in which the SRC supported the family “was the best thing we could do in the moment”.
Some attendees expressed that they found his statement unnecessary to make after Mtshali had already addressed the point, and that they felt it was “shying away” from accountability. These attendees asked Botes to withdraw his statement and apologise. Botes then withdrew his statement.
He said he withdrew the statement because he agrees that taking accountability is important, but that he would not apologise because he does not regret the way in which the SRC assisted the family.
SRC Secretary General and Communications Officer, Ofentse Ledwaba, said that the SRC communication executive team had prepared a statement acknowledging Dlakavu’s passing, but that the majority of the SRC members eventually voted against publishing this statement.
More attendees then urged Botes to apologise not out of regret for how the SRC assisted the family, but for his statement.
Botes clarified that his statement did not contradict Mtshali’s response, adding that he believes he was asked to apologise for the SRC’s actions. This resulted in urgent and overlapping discussion from various attendees, and a request from the Speaker of the Student Assembly, Solomzi Mphambo, for order in the chambers.
Mphambo promised to close the round of questions “if this is going to be your behaviour”.
Sinawo Sangovana, the SRC Treasurer General and Executive Member for Student Access, speaks at the second student plenary sitting. Photo: Emma Olivier
SRC Treasurer General and Executive Member for Student Access, Sinawo Sangovana, began to speak, and was allowed to continue after the Speaker recognised him. Sangovana affirmed what Ledwaba had said, adding, “I understand this was not the fault of the general SRC, but rather the fault of the executive SRC.” He agrees that Dlakavu’s passing should have been acknowledged and also takes accountability.
Mphambo then closed the agenda point.
