JOHANNESBURG - The University of South Africa has denied conferring an honorary doctorate to Malawian singer and socialite Phemphero Mphande, who supposedly received it for his humanitarian work.
The socialite took to social media over the weekend to share his achievement. Subsequent to this, UNISA denied ever nominating him as a candidate for an honorary degree. UNISA said Malawian musician Patience Namadingo and Mansoor Sharif Karim also claimed to have received these doctorates in 2020 and 2021. However, Unisa said this was not true.Over the weekend, a video of Mphande began circulating online depicting the socialite wearing a red graduation gown, ostensibly at a UNISA campus for the graduation ceremony.
Mphande claims he was contacted by people awarding doctorates on behalf of UNISA to recognise his work earlier in 2023. However, the institution said this was incorrect, adding that the document in Mphande's possession was not a UNISA certificate.