EFF warns of ‘maximum’ ‘anarchy’ if government doesn’t scrap university registration fees

The EFF Students Command (EFFSC) held a press conference on Monday at the party’s headquarters in Braamfontein where they listed a series of demands, including the shut down of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).

Other demands included that “no students must be turned back due to lack of space” and that “all certificates” withheld by tertiary institutions due to lack of payment be given to their “rightful owners”.

Keetse also said the control of the education system by “white monopoly capital” must be disrupted.

Keetse warned there would be chaos if the government refused to respond to their calls for fee-free registration at South African universities.

He said the organisation is awaiting a response from government.

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“We have given them deadlines. If they don’t respond by Wednesday, the 9th, they will experience a maximum level of anarchy. We are not scared of it, we know it very well. We have done it before,” he said.

Another demand is that the department of education stop turning students away. “In Gauteng alone, 50,000 learners were turned back” in 2018, according to Keetse.

Keetse, also called for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) to be scrapped altogether, saying that the EFF wanted to cut out the middle man by getting the government to send financial aid straight to students.

“We reject NSFAS and want a better model”, said Keetse, adding the EFF wanted financial aid to be “administered by the government, centrally or distributed on a campus level”.

“The government gives money to NSFAS, they give money to us,” he added, saying the EFFSC would prefer a stituation where the money “comes directly to us”.

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