VANDERBIJLPARK – The Vaal University of Technology (VUT) has kicked off the 2026 academic year with a stern message that the era of instability is over, and it’s time to deliver.
The Desmond Tutu Great Hall at the Vanderbijlpark Campus was packed to the rafters on February 3, as university officials officially reopened the institution and welcomed first-year students in their thousands.
Delivering the State of the University Address, VUT Chancellor and Principal Professor Kehla Ndlovu made it clear that this orientation day was no feel-good ceremony.
“We open a new chapter in the life of this institution, anchored in evidence, discipline and forward momentum. An academic opening is not ceremonial theatre. It is a moment of institutional truth. It is where leadership must account honestly for what was promised, what has been delivered, what has been corrected, and what must now be consolidated,” he said.
Ndlovu addressed the elephant in the room, the investigations and past instability at the institution.
“Members of the VUT community, a State of the University Address would be incomplete and dishonest if it did not address the matter of investigations. Students, staff and partners deserve clarity, not rumours. Let me therefore state this plainly. The historical trajectory of VUT has not always been steady,” he said.
“Over several years, the institution contended with governance, administrative and control weaknesses that eroded confidence and institutional coherence. These challenges are neither denied nor minimised. They form part of the context within which decisive corrective action has been undertaken,” he explained.
With the 2026 academic year now underway, Ndlovu said the focus is no longer on promises, but on performance. “As we open the 2026 academic year, we do so not with slogans, but with substance. We have stabilised. We have rebuilt. We are consolidating. Now, we must perform. May 2026 be remembered as the year VUT turned structure into strength, strategy into systems, and ambition into lived experience,” concluded Ndlovu.
