Students unhappy with education department
About 318 students, who are members of the Mpumalanga Student Organisation, are accusing the provincial Department of Education (DoE) of neglecting them.
MBOMBELA – The students are bursary holders from the DoE and are pursuing their studies at Fort Hare University, Walter Sisulu University and the North West University.
Noni Hlatshwayo, secretary of the organisation, says the students have been protesting at the University of Fort Hare since last Wednesday and demand a meeting with the Department of education. They want to share ideas on how to deal with their grievances which they say affects their academic performances. Most of their grievances emanate from the alleged insufficient stipends, which do not match their living demands in their institutions.
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“When we signed those contracts, we were promised that the department would cater for all our study needs, but things are not happening as promised. We need a book allowance that is flexible to allow us to purchase the type of stationery we need at any store that has what is needed at school,” explained Hlatshwayo.
She adds that the current stationery arrangement between the department and Van Schaik has led to some students being suspended due to stationery being received late or sometimes not received at all.
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“We are expected to use one school bag for our entire degree, which is actually absurd. We only receive laptops during our first year and they stop working before we complete our degrees,” she said.
The students also complain of not getting enough travelling fees from their institution to visit home during holidays.
“The students believe that with the increase in tax/VAT, their stipends should have also been increased. They also raised issues of safety in their campuses and many more,” she added.
A spokesperson for the DoE, Mr Jasper Zwane acknowledged the students’ grievances. “We appreciate the structure for alerting us to what seems to be a challenge to students. It is our commitment to give support to bursary holders. We will call a meeting as soon as possible to listen to them. We will definitely look at the students’ grievances and see how we can best assist one another,” said Zwane.
