Bonke Dumisa will be keeping a promise he made more than 30 years ago when he receives his seventh degree.
|||Durban - Durban economist and businessman, Bonke Dumisa, will be keeping a promise he made to himself while in prison more than 30 years ago when he receives his seventh degree tomorrow.
“As I sat and slept in those rough, grey, ugly prison blankets and mats for 13 months – 28 June 1976 to 28 July 1977… individually, I made a pledge that, if I came out of prison alive, I would study very hard in order to prove that we did not end up in political detention because we did not want to study,” he said this week.
Dumisa, arrested in the aftermath of the 1976 student uprising, went on to shine academically, collecting numerous accolades, but the Master of Laws (LLM) degree to be conferred on him at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Westville campus is special.
The number seven has been a constant in his life: he is one of seven children; he was a victim of forced removals in the seventh month of 1967; he was released from prison in the seventh month (July) of 1977; and he has seven Comrades Marathon medals to his name.
In prison, Dumisa said he was motivated by articles, in smuggled newspapers, about Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe’s academic achievements.
Apart from a professorship in economics, the 55-year-old holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) from the National University of Lesotho, a B Com honours degree from Unisa, an MBA from Bentley University in Massachusetts, a Master of Science degree from the London School of Economics, a Doctor of Business Administration from the former University of Durban-Westville and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of Zululand.
To celebrate his special number seven, the father of two will throw a party to show he has “arrived”.
Dumisa said that he was spurred on to study law after he became frustrated with having to refer his business clients to lawyers because he could not give them the legal advice they needed. “As academics we must give informed information, not just general knowledge,” he said.
The business guru-cum-lawyer called on his peers to broaden their knowledge and not remain in their “little corners”.
He said that he was delighted with his achievement because he did not know anyone who had that many degrees.
The lack of highly educated people in the country was frustrating, he said.
The UKZN lecturer said students were not interested in learning but in just passing.
He said students needed to look beyond studying the bare minimum to pass; instead they should broaden their skills set.
The uMlazi-born Westville resident said the problem was, “people in the townships don’t motivate each other”.
Dumisa believes students should choose qualifications that will get them jobs – not to just have a degree. He also said the importance of Further Education and Training Colleges was underestimated by students.
Even though his son was about to complete his media studies degree, Dumisa said he did not think he would follow in his steps as an academic.
His daughter, he said, was still in high school.
Daily News