It's official: the Democratic Alliance Students Organisation (Daso) will lead the University of Fort Hare into its centenary celebrations next year.
The news that official results after last Thursday’s polls showed that Daso outclassed the ANC-aligned South African Students Congress (Sasco) by 52.5% against Sasco’s 37% is not sitting well with ANC leadership in the province.
Daso’s support at Fort Hare has more than doubled as last year’s student representative council polls saw them secure only 20.5%.
In an attempt to save face, the ANC’s provincial leadership has now summoned Sasco’s University of Fort Hare campus leaders as well as the provincial executive to a meeting at Calata House tomorrow, where the students will have to explain why they performed dismally at the polls.
ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane confirmed the meeting scheduled for tomorrow, saying the loss was a “sad disappointment”.
“It’s quite disappointing because Fort Hare is our pride. You cannot complete a conversation about the struggle for liberation without mentioning Fort Hare. We accept the situation, but the struggle continues.
“We are expecting a report by Tuesday. We are meeting the leadership of Sasco from both campuses up to the province. We want a comprehensive report of what has happened,” said Mabuyane.
The university has produced several high-profile black African leaders including the ANC’s Oliver Tambo, Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe and Pan Africanist Congress founder Robert Sobukwe, to mention but a few. The late international icon Nelson Mandela was once a student at Fort Hare.
Daso’s victory last Friday comes after the ANC pulled out all stops campaigning for Sasco, even delegating senior members of the party. Among them were Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba and Sports and Recreation Minister Fikile Mbalula.
This is the second university campus that Sasco has lost to Daso. Last year Daso took control of Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University’s SRC.
Sasco provincial secretary Yanga Zicina said they viewed their loss to Daso at Fort Hare as a learning curve. “Students voted they were angry about issues such as . They voted in protest fact that many students have not been able to be allocated .
“We believe that we might have been wanting. But we do not believe that the students totally rejected Sasco. It’s merely about bread-and-butter issues,” said Zicina.
Mabuyane said: “It is not an easy thing to accept Fort Hare, finishing its 100 years next year. The institution is a cradle of continental leadership in progressive politics. It’s a very sad moment, but we congratulate Daso. Clearly they have done their homework.”
DA youth leader Yusuf Cassim said Daso’s immediate mission was to deal with issues such as funding and residence shortages. — siphem@dispatch.co.za
Daso takes over ANC’s crown jewel
The news that official results after last Thursday’s polls showed that Daso outclassed the ANC-aligned South African Students Congress (Sasco) by 52.5% against Sasco’s 37% is not sitting well with ANC leadership in the province.
Daso’s support at Fort Hare has more than doubled as last year’s student representative council polls saw them secure only 20.5%.
In an attempt to save face, the ANC’s provincial leadership has now summoned Sasco’s University of Fort Hare campus leaders as well as the provincial executive to a meeting at Calata House tomorrow, where the students will have to explain why they performed dismally at the polls.
ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane confirmed the meeting scheduled for tomorrow, saying the loss was a “sad disappointment”.
“It’s quite disappointing because Fort Hare is our pride. You cannot complete a conversation about the struggle for liberation without mentioning Fort Hare. We accept the situation, but the struggle continues.
“We are expecting a report by Tuesday. We are meeting the leadership of Sasco from both campuses up to the province. We want a comprehensive report of what has happened,” said Mabuyane.
The university has produced several high-profile black African leaders including the ANC’s Oliver Tambo, Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe and Pan Africanist Congress founder Robert Sobukwe, to mention but a few. The late international icon Nelson Mandela was once a student at Fort Hare.
Daso’s victory last Friday comes after the ANC pulled out all stops campaigning for Sasco, even delegating senior members of the party. Among them were Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba and Sports and Recreation Minister Fikile Mbalula.
This is the second university campus that Sasco has lost to Daso. Last year Daso took control of Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University’s SRC.
Sasco provincial secretary Yanga Zicina said they viewed their loss to Daso at Fort Hare as a learning curve. “Students voted they were angry about issues such as . They voted in protest fact that many students have not been able to be allocated .
“We believe that we might have been wanting. But we do not believe that the students totally rejected Sasco. It’s merely about bread-and-butter issues,” said Zicina.
Mabuyane said: “It is not an easy thing to accept Fort Hare, finishing its 100 years next year. The institution is a cradle of continental leadership in progressive politics. It’s a very sad moment, but we congratulate Daso. Clearly they have done their homework.”
DA youth leader Yusuf Cassim said Daso’s immediate mission was to deal with issues such as funding and residence shortages. — siphem@dispatch.co.za
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