Activists restive as UCT struggles to house students

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#RhodesMustFall campaigners have threatened to disrupt campus activities until this is resolved.

The university has just more than 6,000 beds to accommodate 20,000-plus students.

Demand has surged and deputy vice-chancellor Francis Petersen has pointed to the government’s public statements about student debt relief, the promise to fund all needy and qualifying students through the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, and discussions about free education.

Prof Petersen said yesterday that there had been a dramatic and unexpected spike in the uptake for residence places, leading to some being significantly overbooked.

“This has resulted in the department of student affairs having to provide additional, temporary accommodation for approximately 100 students. We have made a commitment to support each student who qualifies with accommodation and the option of food, and are working to put this in place,” he wrote to students and staff.

He bemoaned the behaviour of #RhodesMustFall members.

“Their occupation of buildings that house staff; the threatening and racist behaviour of some of them towards staff; their actions in residences where they are demanding keys to open rooms being held for students who are returning in the next few days, have impaired the system that must deal with these student issues.

“These members are traumatising staff of the offices that serve students. The offices could only operate intermittently and from remote locations this past week as these RMF members interrupted the operations so severely.”

Prof Petersen said additional security had been placed in and around the affected buildings.

“Whilst these members claim to have the interest of students at heart, their actions in fact harm the students they claim to serve. We have repeatedly requested RMF to refrain from this behaviour.

“We will bring disciplinary charges against those who have been identified,” he said.

Chumani Maxwele, a member of the movement, said university activities would be disrupted until management solved the problem.

“This is institutional racism ... Every year, it is only the black students who are on the waiting list, but foreign students from rich European countries are all accommodated within campus ...

“If the university can spend R2m a month on private security, surely it can accommodate all poor and deserving students,” he said.

Maxwele said most black students could not afford to rent outside campus.

“The university will have to do whatever is in its power to make sure that black students will never again experience racism through exclusion and waiting lists.”

Source: Business Day via I-Net Bridge