Some years ago, there was a call that academics who are older than 65 years of age should retire. This call generated a lot of responses, particularly from the age group that was affected. One of those was an academic that is well over the stipulated age group. This academic said they were totally against the call; this is when an academic becomes more productive, the academic said. The academics proved their point by publishing at least two huge books.
On 11 October 2024, two MUT academics in this age category proved the call’s inaccuracy. These are two Professors who are guiding staff members in two faculties to improve their research profiles. Professor Evan Mantzaris is a Research Professor at the Faculty of Management Sciences, while Professor Aroonkumar Beesham is a Research Professor at the Faculty of Natural Sciences. Both Professors are still very active researchers, despite their ages. They lead by example. The Professors scored big in the 2024 Research Awards held on 11 October 2024 off-campus. Professor Mantzaris won a gold prize for toils in a night dominated by young and old. During the period under review, Professor Mantzaris published one “massive book” with EMERALD in England with Professor Sibongiseni Ngcamu from UNISA, five chapters in accredited books, and 13 articles in accredited journals in RSA and internationally. Professor Mantzaris, with others, also contributed a chapter in a book called The Nexus Between Corruption and Poverty. The book was published in 2023. Professor Mantzaris, an Extraordinary Professor at the School of Public Leadership at Stellenbosch University, said that at present, “I work with three MUT colleagues preparing the way ahead.” He said he was “extremely proud of winning my research award, an outcome based on continuous daily work. The perpetual connection with co-workers and researchers throughout RSA and outside it has determined the outcome”.
Professor Beesham won the Senate Prize. He is a Research Fellow at the University of Zululand. His research interests are General Relativity, Cosmology, Black Holes, and Relativity Astrophysics. Although he is now retired, Professor Beesham hopes to be just as active as his PhD supervisor, “world-renown Professor George Ellis, who is 85 years old.”
The other winners were Professor Papy Numbi of the Department of Electrical Engineering. Professor Numbi won Gold for the “Most Productive Researcher”. The Silver Award was won by Professor Tumba Kaniki from the Department of Chemical Engineering and Professor Kuben Naidoo, the Head of the Department of Nature Conservation. Dr Nkululeko Nkosi, from the Department of Chemical Engineering, and Dr Phumzile Masala, the University Registrar, won Bronze.
Professor Babatunde Bakare, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, won the DVC Prize for External Income. Professor Bakare was also named the “Most Productive Senior Researcher.”