Public protector, SAHRC to meet with Nzimande over student crisis
Acting public protector advocate Kholeka Gcaleka and the South African Human Rights Commission will to meet with Minister of Higher Education Blade Nzimande on Tuesday evening.
The virtual meeting comes as students took to the streets for a second week running to demand the scrapping of historic debt amongst others.
The meeting is aimed at finding a lasting solution to the university funding crisis.
Gcaleka will be visiting several tertiary institutions in the country over the next few weeks to hear from various role players.
“In a joint-effort with the SAHRC, the Public Protector South Africa hopes to help the parties find each other and resolve on lasting solutions aimed at curbing a recurrence of the violent scenes that have been seen at various institutions of higher learning over the years,” says the public protector’s spokesperson Oupa Segalwe.
“The two institutions are also considering requesting the South African Union of Students and the South African Universities Vice Chancellors Association for meetings in the quest for a lasting solution in the best interest of the students.”
She believes a long-lasting solution is needed to address issues raised by students.
“We see this volatility every single year. The question is where is the planning? How do we make sure that students are in lecture halls at the start of each academic year rather that see them pouring into the streets to protest for access to tertiary education? How do we curb the arrests and the brutality at the hands of the police? We need to find lasting solutions,” Segalwe says.
The first stop will be the University of Venda in Limpopo on Tuesday.
ALSO READ
