ED To Dish Out Degrees To UZ Students Who Sat For Only 1 Semester
By Dorrothy Moyo |
University of Zimbabwe Faces Urgent Court Bid to Halt Graduation Over ‘Degree Printing Machine’ Allegations
Harare – 9 August 2025 – The Association of University Teachers (AUT) has filed an urgent High Court application seeking to block the Chancellor of the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) from conferring degrees, diplomas, and certificates at the institution’s 44th graduation ceremony.
The court papers, stamped by the High Court’s Civil Division on Saturday, list 13 respondents, including the Vice Chancellor Prof Paul Mapfumo, the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, the Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education, the Law Society of Zimbabwe, and various professional councils.
According to the AUT, the drastic move follows what they describe as “gross violations of academic regulations” by the UZ administration, which they claim have rendered the institution’s qualifications “defective.” The lecturers’ union accuses the university leadership of turning the institution into a “Degree Printing Machine,” alleging that academic standards have collapsed to the point where “like pizza, one can now order a degree.”
The AUT says the crisis stems from an indefinite strike launched on 16 April 2025, which they claim deprived students of meaningful teaching and learning in Block 3 and Block 4 modules. The union blames the UZ administration, led by Prof Mapfumo, for arrogance and academic fraud, citing a 45-page dossier that reportedly details “the most grave” instances of malpractice in Zimbabwe’s higher education history.
The statement praises members who endured alleged intimidation, “kangaroo courts,” and attempts to force them to disavow the union, vowing that their struggle has been recorded in history.
If the court grants the interdict, it would halt the conferring of qualifications at one of Zimbabwe’s flagship universities, potentially throwing thousands of students’ graduation plans into uncertainty.
The case is now before the High Court under an urgent application, with the matter pitting academic staff against the country’s largest tertiary institution in a dispute that could reshape the governance and credibility of Zimbabwe’s higher education sector.
Case No: HCH (Harare High Court) – Filed 9 August 2025.
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