Africa-Press – South-Africa. Wits University has responded to the Student Representative Council’s (SRC) demands after several days of protests.
During the protests, students vandalised property and even marched to the house of the vice-chancellor, Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, where they allegedly threatened to burn it down.
Wits management said the behaviour of the protesting students was unacceptable as a means to resolve conflict.
One of the SRC’s demands is that all students registered in 2022, and are academically eligible to return to Wits, should be allowed to register, despite what they owe.
However, Wits said “resource constraints” meant that it was not able to allow students who did not meet the re-registration requirements. On a case-by-case basis, it would consider requests for registration assistance from certain unregistered students and allow late registrations, with conditions.
The SRC said the response was inadequate as it only referred to registrations for this year.
In response to the demand that Wits absorb the R86-million accommodation budget shortfall, created by NSFAS capping on-campus accommodation at R45 000 per annum, the university said it would establish a working group with the SRC to engage NSFAS and resolve the funding crisis.
It said it could not absorb the shortfall, as this “would compromise the institution’s financial sustainability”.
The SRC agreed to create a working group and demanded that an additional 1 000 beds be added to the current provision of 500 hardship accommodation beds.
However, Wits said the SRC had previously said that 500 beds would be sufficient to meet the current demand and that it was fast-tracking 150 beds.
Wits said:
The SRC labelled this response as “disingenuous” and said it was “blatant misinformation”.
“Again, this institution reaffirms that they do not care about students sleeping in libraries, labs, campus bathrooms and unsafe Braamfontein streets,” the SRC said.
Wits agreed to a waiver of the R10 000 deposit for its residences, saying the Wits Hardship Fund’s rules for accommodation, as well as prevailing rules, will be applicable.
The SRC demanded that all suspensions and legal action undertaken in response to the protests be withdrawn.
Wits, however, said those who were suspended were allowed to make representations before suspension orders were issued.
The university said it had not taken any legal action against the SRC but demanded that it de-escalate the protest.
The SRC responded that it did not recognise the “illegitimate suspension orders” as students were not given sufficient time to respond to it, adding that meetings at which they were to defend themselves were outside the university’s operating hours.
“This was an abuse of policy and renders the orders null and void.”
Wits said it would reduce the number of private security guards if there were no further disruptions, no intimidation of students or staff, and no damage to property.
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
