The Presidency has asked economist Thabi Leoka, a member of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council, to "expeditiously address the matter of her qualifications" following reports she does not have a PhD from the London School of Economics (LSE) as claimed. 

"The Presidential Advisory Council is a non-statutory body, therefore, formal vetting is not a requirement," said Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya.

"The members volunteer their time, and they are not employed by the presidency, nor are they remunerated by the state."

Magwenya said the presidency asked Leoka to clear up the question of her qualifications in the interest of transparency. 

This comes after Business Day on Tuesday reported that it could find no evidence of Leoka’s claimed PhD in economics. 

The 44-year-old is a well-known economist and commentator. In 2019, she was appointed by Ramaphosa to serve on the Public Investment Corporation Commission of Inquiry. She has also worked on a panel that reviewed SA's zero-rated VAT products.

In a WhatsApp message to News24 Business on Tuesday evening, Leoka declined to give more information about her degree, saying that her "lawyers will respond in full".

Leoka has served on the boards of a number of local companies, including Anglo American Platinum, MTN SA, and, until recently, Remgro.  

A spokesperson for the investment holding company said while it was aware of "unconfirmed allegations" against Leoka, her qualifications were not behind her leaving as a non-executive director last month. 

"She advised the board that she opted to no longer stand for election as an independent non-executive director of the company due to personal reasons, at which point her tenure as a director of Remgro ended," said a spokesperson. 

Leoka, who is currently in the US, initially responded to the Business Day article in an interview with Clement Manyathela on Radio 702.

Asked by the host whether she had misrepresented her qualifications, Leoka said the answer was a "straight no", adding she did have a PhD from the LSE.

She said she suspected journalists may have used an incorrect name when they tried to verify her qualifications with the university. 

"Without using the right names, the school wouldn’t confirm a name that is incomplete," she said. Department of Home Affairs records show that Leoka changed her first name from Bathabile to Thabi in early 2018. 

Leoka added that someone with a "personal vendetta" against her had been shopping stories against her to various media outfits.

She said that online news site Daily Maverick had last month checked - and dismissed - similar allegations against her.

But on Wednesday, Daily Maverick published its own article on the saga, stating that it, too, could find no evidence that she had a PhD in economics from the LSE. 

Business Day and the Daily Maverick both quoted the LSE as saying that it can find no record of Leoka being awarded a PhD from LSE. 

The University of London, meanwhile, told Daily Maverick that it does not offer a PhD in Economics. Leoka's profile in a statement put out by National Treasury in 2018 stated she received her PhD from this institution. 

Leoka does have an MSc in Economics and Economic History from the LSE, which also appears on her CV. An LSE digest from 2004 names her as a graduate.