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VUT normalises following brief flare-up

───   08:01 Thu, 14 Feb 2019

VUT normalises following brief flare-up  | News Article

The situation at the Vaal University of Technology (VUT) in Vanderbijlpark has normalised somewhat as the Student Representative Council (SRC) continues to engage with the institution’s management.


Student protests at VUT intensified this week echoing the unrest at a number of institutions countrywide. The situation appeared to worsen briefly on Tuesday as VUT students torched a vehicle. The institution was even shut down as management met with student leadership. OFM News correspondent, Jabulani Radebe was at the scene today where he described a brief flare-up, with disgruntled students throwing rocks at people waiting at the gate, before heading back to their residences. He spoke to SRC President, Elisha Mogale who informed him that their meeting with management did not go ahead as intended with the parties unable to come to an agreement.

One of the issues raised by students is lack of student accommodation. Lack of funding for all Bachelor of Technology programmes. He says at the moment, the institution is prioritising engineering students and marginalising students who are enrolled in the humanities and management related programmes. There is also the matter of students who missed the cut off date for NSFAS applications. He says not all people come from well-resourced communities, where access to information is easily accessible. “There is nobody for these students,” he says. He says this is a direct contradiction of the call for free education.

The students now await the outcome of the latest VUT management meeting. OFM News attempted to contact the institution on the matter, to no avail. None of the institution’s phone lines are being picked up.

On Saturday, February 9, the South African Union of Students (SAUS) – an umbrella body for Student Representative Councils – and Minister of Higher Education and Training, Naledi Pandor reached an impasse on the back of a marathon 6-hour meeting over their demands regarding funding, accommodation and allowances for students.


OFM News/Jabulani Radebe 

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