Evicted students’ court threat

Lawyers representing Fort Hare residence students have given the university management until today to reverse the decision to evict them from campus or take the matter to court.

This follows the university’s decision last week to evict them and to suspend all academic programmes until October 12, to allow the council to discuss whether it would be increasing fees next year or not, and if so, by how much.

But in addition, the students at the university’s Alice campus are also demanding the replacement of the company responsible for security in their hostels.

This follows a spate of break-ins in students’ rooms last month. A former employee of the security company has been arrested for alleged links to the break-ins.

The Saturday Dispatch reported last week that police had arrested Madoda Sityi, a former Equicent employee, at his Alice golf course home. Sityi was allegedly found with a bunch of locks and a master key to students’ rooms.

This was after more than 40 students reported that laptops, cellphones and other personal items had been stolen from their Gertrude Nhlabathi residence rooms.

The students also demand an end to outsourcing, as well as a shuttle service to transport students after hours.

Instead of responding to their list of demands, UFH management decided to shut down the university last Wednesday and ordered students to vacate all residences.

Through their lawyers, Mbabane & Sokutu Attorneys, the students demanded last Thursday that the university reverse the decision to evict them.

Attorney Bayethe Maswazi said they had given the university until 10am to respond to their demand to remain on campus.

If management did not reverse its decision, they would approach the high court, he added.

The students have boycotted classes since mid-September in protest over the lax security.

Equicent’s newly-built multimillion-rand building at the Alice campus was burnt to the ground last week by students.