Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University SRC president Nicholas Nyati said yesterday that students walked out of the meeting with Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande on Thursday because it was a “talk show” with no solutions.
They claimed Nzimande and his deputy, Mduduzi Manana, who chaired the meeting in Tembisa, Gauteng, did not have answers to their questions, but allegedly tried to divide them instead.
Nyati and his counterparts from universities such as Rhodes, Wits, Stellenbosch, Pretoria and others, also claimed some students were manhandled while leaving the meeting.
This was denied by Nzimande, who told journalists after the behind-the-scenes meeting that students had been walked out by hand, and not manhandled.
The meeting was called to discuss some of the burning issues among students, such as their demands for free tertiary registration this year, free education, quality student accommodation, no financial exclusion, language policies that act as a barrier to access, and equal treatment of international students studying in South Africa
In an interview yesterday, Nyati said they had walked out because they felt they were not taken seriously.
“We presented eight demands to the minister but he failed to even meet one.
“The meeting was chaired by his deputy , who did not want to take our questions.
“So we decided to stage a walk-out to send a strong message to him because he thinks we are playing.”
Nyati said only University of Venda and University of Limpopo student leaders stayed in the meeting.
“Half of NMMU, UCT and others were locked in.
“When students from other universities tried to leave, they were threatened politically and told they had been helped during their campaigns,” he said.
But a University of Venda student leader said they decided against walking out because they were not from privileged universities.
This angered Nyati.
“I think that is an insult.
“The Eastern Cape province is one of the poorest.”
Students walk out on Nzimande
They claimed Nzimande and his deputy, Mduduzi Manana, who chaired the meeting in Tembisa, Gauteng, did not have answers to their questions, but allegedly tried to divide them instead.
Nyati and his counterparts from universities such as Rhodes, Wits, Stellenbosch, Pretoria and others, also claimed some students were manhandled while leaving the meeting.
This was denied by Nzimande, who told journalists after the behind-the-scenes meeting that students had been walked out by hand, and not manhandled.
The meeting was called to discuss some of the burning issues among students, such as their demands for free tertiary registration this year, free education, quality student accommodation, no financial exclusion, language policies that act as a barrier to access, and equal treatment of international students studying in South Africa
In an interview yesterday, Nyati said they had walked out because they felt they were not taken seriously.
“We presented eight demands to the minister but he failed to even meet one.
“The meeting was chaired by his deputy , who did not want to take our questions.
“So we decided to stage a walk-out to send a strong message to him because he thinks we are playing.”
Nyati said only University of Venda and University of Limpopo student leaders stayed in the meeting.
“Half of NMMU, UCT and others were locked in.
“When students from other universities tried to leave, they were threatened politically and told they had been helped during their campaigns,” he said.
But a University of Venda student leader said they decided against walking out because they were not from privileged universities.
This angered Nyati.
“I think that is an insult.
“The Eastern Cape province is one of the poorest.”
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