WHILE South Africans were celebrating Freedom Day this weekend, students from Lovedale Further Education and Training (FET) College experienced a “painful” weekend when they were forced to sleep in appalling campus residences.
This comes after the students were evicted from Thandolwethu B&B on Friday over unpaid rent.
They were temporarily accommodated in the college residences earmarked for renovations.
The residences are no longer used as they are not in a suitable condition to accommodate students.
Male students were accommodated in a study room and had to sleep on old steel beds while women were placed in rooms where they had to share single beds .
The students said they only had their blankets and toiletries with them.
When the Daily Dispatch visited the campus on Freedom Day, security guards were scattered around the campus to maintain order.
“To us this Freedom Day was painful. We slept on the floor and some of us slept on steel beds without mattresses on them. Some of us resorted in using mats just to cover the steel beds,” said student Sonwabiso Bozo.
In addition to the accommodation problems, food was also a problem.
“It was painful to watch the students from this residence eat a full meal while we were eating bread and butter. We sat at the same table but had different meals.
“We understand that we don’t live here and therefore there were no plans for us but this is a bad experience,” Zezethu Tom, who hails from Adelaide.
The students said they had not paid rent at the B&B since January following an agreement that the owner would get money after the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) had paid it to the school.
“This whole thing will affect our results, I was supposed to sit for my final examination soon but I don’t know what will happen now,” added Abongile Ngwenze, another student.
In the midst of the feud, the college administrator Marietta van Rooyen issued a letter on Friday stating that all students in the three Lovedale campuses at Zwelitsha, Alice and King William’s Town had to vacate the campuses on Saturday morning.
“Please take note that the riotous behaviour of students on King William’s Town campus forced me into a decision to close all three campuses of Lovedale FET College temporarily to students until 6 May 2013,” Van Rooyen stated.
The students ignored the order, saying they did not have money to go home.
“All we want is to be given our bursary and this whole thing can be resolved ,” added Siphelele Femele.
While students were ordered to leave the campuses, all lecturers and administrative staff are still on duty . —
Lovedale students ordered to go home
This comes after the students were evicted from Thandolwethu B&B on Friday over unpaid rent.
They were temporarily accommodated in the college residences earmarked for renovations.
The residences are no longer used as they are not in a suitable condition to accommodate students.
Male students were accommodated in a study room and had to sleep on old steel beds while women were placed in rooms where they had to share single beds .
The students said they only had their blankets and toiletries with them.
When the Daily Dispatch visited the campus on Freedom Day, security guards were scattered around the campus to maintain order.
“To us this Freedom Day was painful. We slept on the floor and some of us slept on steel beds without mattresses on them. Some of us resorted in using mats just to cover the steel beds,” said student Sonwabiso Bozo.
In addition to the accommodation problems, food was also a problem.
“It was painful to watch the students from this residence eat a full meal while we were eating bread and butter. We sat at the same table but had different meals.
“We understand that we don’t live here and therefore there were no plans for us but this is a bad experience,” Zezethu Tom, who hails from Adelaide.
The students said they had not paid rent at the B&B since January following an agreement that the owner would get money after the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) had paid it to the school.
“This whole thing will affect our results, I was supposed to sit for my final examination soon but I don’t know what will happen now,” added Abongile Ngwenze, another student.
In the midst of the feud, the college administrator Marietta van Rooyen issued a letter on Friday stating that all students in the three Lovedale campuses at Zwelitsha, Alice and King William’s Town had to vacate the campuses on Saturday morning.
“Please take note that the riotous behaviour of students on King William’s Town campus forced me into a decision to close all three campuses of Lovedale FET College temporarily to students until 6 May 2013,” Van Rooyen stated.
The students ignored the order, saying they did not have money to go home.
“All we want is to be given our bursary and this whole thing can be resolved ,” added Siphelele Femele.
While students were ordered to leave the campuses, all lecturers and administrative staff are still on duty . —
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