By: Kaveel Singh.
Port Elizabeth – A group of NMMU students started a peaceful protest on Monday to demand that those unable to pay fees could access their results.
“There are a number of students who cannot see their results because they did not pay fees,” Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Student Representative Council (SRC) president Nicholas Nyati said on Monday.
These students qualified for National Student Financial Aid Scheme funding, but the fund did not have money for them, he claimed.
“We are saying this is unfair. They deserve to view their results.”
He said the peaceful sit-in began at 03:00.
University spokesperson Debbie Derry said the institution had been shut down. Management was scheduled to meet the SRC on Monday.
Nyati said the university had money that students felt should be redirected.
“The university must take care of students. The university has more than R1 billion in investments. We want the university to reprioritise these funds.”
He said a small group of SA Students Congress (Sasco) members wanted to “become violent and talk about other issues”.
The Sasco-aligned students and cleaning, security, and gardening staff had burnt tyres, he said.