You know, President Jacob Zuma is such an interesting man with interesting characteristics.
The man seemingly makes glaring mistakes that many find difficult to comprehend. First, it was Nkandlagate, Waterkloofgate, Marikanagate, Nenegate, Guptagate or Zuptagate, Thuligate, and now it’s Gordhangate and Studentgate.
How many mistakes must you make before you, yourself fall? Instead of calling for a national indaba on the #FeesMustFall, you prefer to set up a commission after commission of inquiry? It is not commissions that our nation, and tertiary students in particular, need now.
These students and their parents need tangible solutions to the issue of varsity fees for the poor, as promised in the Freedom Charter. The commissions that you’re setting up, Mr President, are nothing but a waste of taxpayers’ money, the very same money which should be diverted to funding the poor students which is being misused by you for non-productive commissions.
I would understand if you were setting up an indaba to find solutions to how the students can be funded, but you just want information that is staring you in the face. The students are simply on the streets because they can no longer afford the fees, some of whom owe thousands upon thousands in outstanding fees, and others have been thrown out, already, for non-payment.
It was your organisation, Sir, that crafted the idea of free education in the country and the students are merely urging you to consider implementing this policy sooner, rather than later, as you also promised in your various election manifestos, including the Mangaung Conference of the governing party which re-elected you to its helm.
We urge you to stop wasting money, the very funds that you should use and divert to fund the students and waste it on useless commissions that will achieve no meaningful objective. What the students need now is action and not talk shops. They have had enough of your meaningless promises.
You promised these students free education as a basic right enshrined in the Constitution. I hope you realise that you’re in violation of our Constitution, again, by not delivering on a promise your organisation made at the launch of the Freedom Charter in 1955.
Now, 23 years later into freedom and democracy, the ANC and its government, have not put the matter on its agenda – not even a national debate – despite the fact that these protests have been going on for the past two years.
When are you, Mr President, going to wake up and smell the coffee that these students are brewing right in front of your nose?
