We won’t back down, warns TUT SRC
The student representative council at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) in Soshanguve says it will not back down until all meal allowances have been paid.
The university has suspended all academic activities amid student protests.
Students are demanding a meal allowance from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas), particularly for students living off-campus.
Students have also been told to vacate campus residences until further notice, but SRC president Lucky Nkambule says it’s not obligatory for them to move out.
"We don’t know when further notice is. It could be next week Monday or even after five weeks, students cannot pack and leave for a period that is undisclosed.
“We are going to make sure that students who don’t have money to go home remain at the residences."
Nkambule says despite concerns over the amount of work students will be missing, they also cannot be expected to study on empty stomachs.
The SRC will stay on campus to engage with protesting students and the university.
“The university has made it very clear that this is not their call to make. So it is more or less a battle between Nsfas and the Department of Higher Education.”