The Stellenbosch University Retirement Fund (SURF), referred to as the Fund, is pleased to announce the start of the nomination phase for the election of five (5) member trustees to the Board of Trustees. These trustees will represent the interests of Fund members, including current and former employees who contributes or contributed to the Fund. The aim of this notice is to explain the election procedures and provide further information on trustees’ duties and responsibilities.
In accordance with paragraph 2(v) of the Trustee Fund Election Protocol (hereafter the Protocol), member trustees are elected via a secret ballot. The Board of Trustees of SURF consists of five (5) employee representatives and five (5) employer representatives.
Purpose of the Election
In terms of paragraph 2(i) of the Protocol, the Board of Management for the Fund will consist of ten (10) board members, of which five must be elected by the members of the Fund. This nomination process aims to initiate the process to fill these five member-elected Board member vacancies that will occur on 7 December 2025.
Current Trustees and Vacant Positions
The terms of office for the following five (5) employee representatives will conclude on 7 December 2025:
- Prof Tania Ajam (Associate Professor: School of Public Leadership)
- Mr Ché Bermosky (Legal Advisor, Legal Services)
- Prof Corné Schutte (Vice-Dean: Research and Industry Liaison, Faculty of Engineering)
- Mr Johan Steyn (Senior Lecturer: Business Management)
- Prof Johan van Rooyen (Professor: Business Management)
These individuals, apart from Prof van Rooyen, have indicated their willingness to be re-nominated.
Term of office
In terms of paragraph 2(ii) of the Protocol, the term of office for the trustees to be elected will be five years.
Brief summary of duties of a trustee
Trustees must have the interests of all Fund stakeholders, including Fund members, at heart.
- They have a fiduciary duty.
- The trustees are responsible for investing the Fund’s assets.
- When a member passes away, the trustees have to decide on the distribution of death benefits among the dependents of the deceased and other beneficiaries.
- The trustees have to ensure that the rules of the Fund are applied correctly at all times, and that all officers of the Fund fully comply with the relevant legislative provisions.
- The trustees are responsible for managing the Fund so that Fund benefits are paid out correctly and in a timely manner.
- The trustees have to ensure that the Fund regularly communicates with its members.
- Trustees must act with care, diligence, and good faith and avoid a conflict of interest between their own personal interests and those of the Fund.
- Trustees must attend all trustee meetings as well as the meetings held by the sub-committees on which they serve.
- Trustees are required by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) to complete the Retirement Fund Toolkit assessments within six months of appointment.
- Any other duty allocated by the Fund.
Renumeration
Please note that no remuneration is attached to this role or position.
Criteria that disqualify an individual from holding the office of a trustee
The following criteria will disqualify a nominee from holding the office of a trustee:
- not a member of the Fund.
- permanently unable to perform the functions of a trustee.
- have been declared insolvent, either provisionally or finally, by a court of law.
- have been found guilty of an offence and sentenced to imprisonment without the option of a fine. However, a person is not considered sentenced until any appeal against the conviction or sentence has been decided, or the time limit for an appeal has passed.
Nominated individuals must not meet any of these disqualification criteria. The onus is on the nominee and their supporter to ensure that they do not meet any of the disqualifying criteria.
Criteria for Eligible Nominees
To be eligible for nomination as a Board member, individuals must be members of the Fund. This includes those with paid-up memberships, deferred retirees, and those receiving living annuities within the Fund. Furthermore, an outgoing Board member is eligible for re-election or re-appointment. A nominee must not already be serving as an employer representative of the Fund.
What Nominators Should Consider
Before nominating a candidate for election, nominators should consider:
- The collective knowledge, skills, and experience required by the Board of Trustees.
- The diversity of the Board of Trustees.
- Whether the candidate meets the appropriate fit and proper criteria.
- Whether the candidate can commit sufficient time to Fund matters.
- The past performance of a Board member before nominating them for re-election.
Next Steps After Nominations are Received (Election Process Overview)
The process for determining elected Board members depends on the number of nominations received relative to the five vacancies:
- If the number of nominations received equals the number of vacancies (i.e., exactly five nominations are received), then those nominees will be considered to be elected unopposed. This means no election will be necessary, and the nominees will automatically become Trustees.
- If the number of nominations received exceeds the number of vacancies (i.e., more than five nominations are received), the election will proceed, and voting will take place via a secret ballot. In this instance, we will issue a call for votes. The Board members elected by the members will be those nominees who receive the highest number of votes. The alternate Board members will be those nominees who receive the next highest number of votes. A substitute trustee replaces an employee trustee should the latter resign before the expiry of his/her term of office.
- If the number of nominations received is less than the number of vacancies (i.e., fewer than five nominations are received), those nominees will be declared elected, and a new nomination and election process will be undertaken to fill the vacant position(s). If there are not enough nominees to also elect alternate Board members, no alternate Board member will be elected.
The overall process is divided into two phases: the nomination phase and the election phase, overseen by the principal officer. Member trustee elections will be communicated to all members should we need to run an election. For now, the focus is only on the nomination process.
Nomination process
Kindly note the importance of complying with the provisions in this notice and on the nomination form. Failure to complete all relevant fields of the nomination form or not adhering to the election rules will render a nomination invalid.
Written nominations by Fund members to fill the vacancies will be open and must be submitted via e-mail to elections@sun.ac.za. All nominations must reach us by 17 October 2025 at 23:59. No late nominations will be considered.
Nomination(s) must be signed by a member who nominate a candidate and the nominee themselves and must be submitted with the signature of the nominee to indicate that the nominee accepts the nomination.
The nomination form is listed below. You will find that there are several iterations of the same nomination form. This is to accommodate members who prefer inserting signatures as images or those signing in Adobe. If you are unable to use these methods, please print, sign and scan the nomination form. We will only accept electronic forms.
In earlier elections, the members forming part of the voting pool requested more information on the candidates. Therefore, the form now includes a compulsory vision statement. The nominated person may opt to write the statement in English or Afrikaans or both. The number of words (per language) may not be more than 200. Should the number of words exceed 200, the nomination will be invalid. The nominated person may also elect to include an optional abridged CV.
Please note that nomination or election forms received after the deadline will be null and void. The results of the election will be reported to the membership via an electronic notice.
We encourage all eligible members to participate in this important process by nominating suitable candidates for the Board of Trustees. SURF is committed to diversification across all areas. Members are encouraged to participate in the nomination and election process to ensure that a diversified, representative board is elected.
Should you require any further information on the election process or the implications of the election, feel free to contact elections@sun.ac.za
Nomination form: