LETTER: Matter of fact

In an allegation against University of Cape Town council chair Norman Arendse (Good Week, Bad Week, March 27-April 2), the article misinterpreted two separate voting processes.

The first vote, which was tied at 13 members apiece, was on whether the council should consider a matter that was not part of the agenda. (The motion concerned one taken last year on Gaza and the university’s opposition to a pending Western Cape High Court case.) The university statutes required the council to first vote on whether to entertain a vote on the motion’s merits. The council vote was tied. As a result of the chair’s casting vote, a further vote on the merits of the motion was permitted.

The casting vote by the chair allowed the discussion on the matter to proceed. The second vote was on a motion to rescind the council’s Gaza resolutions, and in this regard, 14 members voted against, 13 in favour, and one abstained.

Elijah Moholola
University of Cape Town

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