Abstract
Scholars and state authorities have extensively documented the positive aspects of transformation through government speeches, policies, and the annual reports of universities. Significant progress has been made by universities in this regard. For example, the University of the Western Cape (UWC), formerly a historically black university, now ranks among the top universities in South Africa. The government has also invested in infrastructure, particularly in historically black universities, leading to substantial changes in the equity profile of staff, students, and leadership within the sector over the past three decades. However, this article focuses on the other side, what we perceive as the darker side of change. We argue that certain practices among vice-chancellors, the increased workload of young, black academics, the ongoing oppression of black women within academia, universities struggling to meet the needs of a growing student body, and the emergence of "tenderpreneurs" operating within university spaces exemplify the dark side of transformation.