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Students protesting at Wits University.
Fani Mahunts, Gallo Images
- The students want to eliminate the historical debt of 13 billion rand, among other issues.
- SAUS says more universities are expected to join the protests.
- Higher Education, Science and Technology Minister Blade Nzimande called on students to speak with the university administration.
The massive student protest is expected to continue on Tuesday, as no resolution has been found that meets the demands of the South African Student Union (SAUS). On Monday, the students took to the streets to fulfill their promise to paralyze the 26 universities of the country.
SAUS Secretary General Lwandile Mstolo told News24 that the Department of Higher Education had made no effort to meet their demands:
“The protest will continue until they have also responded to us and until we are happy with the way they are meeting our demands. So far we have not received any response and we will not return to classes.
Mstolo said they have received indications from several other SRC representatives from various other universities saying they will join the shutdown.
READ | Higher education department is not in a ‘financial position’ to pay off student debt – Blade Nzimande
“We hope that more universities will close on Tuesday and it will be broader. I want it to be noted that we refuse to give in, “he said.
The students want to eliminate the historical debt of 13 billion rand, among other issues.
These are the demands of SAUS:
Financial settlement of historic student debt, currently amounting to R13 billion.
Justice for the Mthokozisi Ntumba family and an end to police brutality against students.
Immediate provision of graduate funding.
NSFAS funding allocation for incoming students and new students.
Laptops for students.
Student assignments will be provided in March.
Increase student enrollment fees.
Free registration for all students during the 2021 academic year.
Provide students with transcripts and certificates, even if they still owe fees.
Zero percent rate increase for the 2021 academic year.
Free quality education for the poor and the missing means.
Suspension of academic exclusion for the 2021 academic year.
100% return of all students to campuses below Level 1 from closure.
Extension of the registration period until April 30.
NSFAS appeals will open and end in the next two weeks.
While the University of Cape Town and the University of the Western Cape were quiet. There were protests at Rhodes University in the early hours of Monday morning. ANCYL also held demonstrations outside the National Student Financial Aid (NSFAS) offices in Wynberg, where they met with the CEO for several hours.
READ ALSO | Protests over university fees: students block roads near the UJ in a morning demonstration
Lindokuhle Xulu from the ANC Youth League said: “We met with NSFAS for three hours to discuss the challenges our students face and the problem we are seeing is that in NSFAS everything is centralized, there is a branch that deals with all the provinces and us this is not realistic. Education cannot be turned into a commodity, it has to be free and equal ”.
ANCYL members protest in front of the NSFAS offices.
Supplied
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande said: “NSFAS informed me that it is working hard to finalize the appeals so that students are not prevented from registering in time to start the 2021 academic year. I urge the student structures to continue to interact with the management teams of all our public universities, using the communication structures that already exist for this commitment. Many of the issues that you have raised require that the students and the university administration work together at the institutional level ”.
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