Conflicting reports about missing student
Missing activist Vusi Mahlangu has apparently been found after disappearing this past Tuesday.
UPDATED: Wits food vendor workers protest
STRIKE: Workers and students protesting against alleged exploitation by franchise owners Photo: Nasya Smith
UPDATED: Protesting workers from food franchises at Wits have met with their bosses to give their demands and will go back to work as they await a response next week.
“We have pitched our needs, demands and grievances to our bosses and we are waiting for responses and resolutions by next week Thursday,” said Thandiswa Yaphi, a protest leader and worker at Sizzlers.
Nicholas Matthes, a member of Wits Services, had helped facilitate Friday afternoon’s meeting and said the issues were sensitive with “many contributing factors.”
By Nasya Smith, Aarti Bhana and Leanne Cumming
Workers from food franchises on campus launched a lunchtime protest in the Matrix on Friday complaining that their working conditions are exploitative.
The singing and dancing workers were soon joined by some students during the protest as they forced the closure of Matrix shops.
Thandiswa Yaphi, who works at Sizzlers and is one of the protest leaders, said that some of the workers have been employed by food franchises on campus for over fifteen years but still do not have a contract. Some of the workers that do have contracts, allegedly have to adhere to strict bathroom times and still receive a wage below the legal minimum wage.
Yaphi said that the Labour department is not assisting them in dealing with their problems.
The protesting workers are also unhappy that they were not included in an insourcing agreement with Wits workers that topped-up salaries to a minimum of R4,500.
Akies Berdanis, owner of Zesty Lemonz, said that all food franchises on campus operate independently from the university and his employee’s pay is the same as in any other Zesty Lemonz franchise. Berdanis admitted that not all franchises on campus were aligned with regulations of the Bargaining Council, an association of staff and employers, last year but apparently most have “come to the party” since then.
When asked about the bathroom regulations, Berdanis said that the franchises merely ask if employees could avoid going to the bathroom during busy hours, but says “we are human, if you have to go you have to go”.
The protests are continuing and the workers are currently having a meeting to discuss the way forward.
Slice of life: Love in a time of revolution
February is commonly known as the month of love. But for me, love is not only about red roses, fancy dinners and cuddly teddy bears. Love is what spurs us on to act on some of our deepest passions. Love, for one’s people and the world, is the basis of all revolutions.
South Africans are a people fueled by passion. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that we are the model state with no foibles, psychopaths or greedy leaders. We are far from it. But we love. For the most part we love our food, our cultures, our soccer teams and our music. But most of all we love our constitution so much that we witnessed over 2 000 people marching to the Constitutional Court in defence of our Public Protector and our constitution this week.
Love is a peculiar thing. It ignites a flame in the hearts of those it imposes itself upon, breathing hope into the minds of the numb and giving a renewed sense of courage and self-sacrifice in the souls of the weary. Love fuels humanity’s drive to better itself in a system that is designed to belittle it.
Apartheid was a system that the National Party preferred to describe as a way of self-preservation. Preserving Afrikaaner culture, language and the material wealth that they violently acquired. As sick as it sounds, it’s a gluttonous love of self that fuelled the colonial project of separate development.
On the other hand it is also love that gave Bantu Steven Biko the will to write what he liked. Love spurred Hector Peterson on to march towards the bullets that fatally martyred him. Much like how love urged the miners of Marikana, and the students of the #RhodesMustFall movement to stand up for what they believe in. Love can bring people together for a diverse range of reasons, no matter how strange and taboo they might be.
The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual community has had to endure prejudice, persecution, rape and abuse to be able to openly love. While Black girls still need to explain why they want to have safe spaces solely for themselves. Across the continent states are still illegitimatising homosexuality and ostracising those who love to love other people.
It is a love for education that kept students in South Africa marching on even in the blistering sun, protesting for free education during the #FeesMustFall protests. It is a love for our living environment that keeps activist groups ready to defend (and sometimes remedy) some of the wrongs done to the earth. And it is love for our fellow man that has sparked mass outcry against the killings in Palestine, Black America and Burundi.
Eusebius McKaiser once told a class I was in, “don’t be afraid of your own biases.” And we shouldn’t be afraid to love. If we had to take notes on love, comradery and passion, they are the excellent lessons to be taken from our global history. If there’s one thing I wish everyone on Valentine’s Day, its that we may all find something that moves us and we are passionate about. Something to love.
#FMF protestor tries for (wo)man of the match
It was an interesting day on the soccer pitch on Tuesday night when a game between the Clever Boys and Kaizer Chiefs boasted an appearance by a #FEESMUSTFALL protester.
It was more than soccer obstacles in the way for Bidvest Wits on Tuesday night when during their clash with Kaizer Chiefs, a Wits student protester holding #FEESMUSTFALL banner ran across the pitch.
The student, Busisiwe Catherine Seabe, ran in the 78th minute of the game across the pitch waving the #FEESMUSTFALL banner. She was stopped by a player and stadium security and taken to the Hillbrow Police station.
“I was charged apparently with contravening an act from 2010, I’m not sure what this act is and neither are my legal representatives,” said Seabe.
Seabe was released this morning and has been back on campus, “I’m waiting to appear at the Hillbrow court at 8:30am on Friday, I am waiting to be briefed by my legal team about this,” said Seabe.
According to Seabe, she and other FMF members went to match without the intention of protesting.
“We were just watching the game funny enough and everyone brought tickets to support the team,” Seabe told Wits Vuvuzela.
Seabe said that while watching the match, she was inspired to stage an unplanned protest on the pitch.
“Bidvest is a large part of the Wits community. If Bidvest can come on campus and ask students for support then surely the students can ask them for support when we are facing issues of accommodation, fees … The soccer industry generates millions in revenue,” Seabe said.
After dodging Campus Control on the pitch, Seabe was eventually stopped by new Clever Boy S’fiso Hlanti who didn’t seem too impressed with her actions. “He actually just asked me what am I doing? What was on the banner?’,” said Seabe.
In the footage of the incident, a member of the Bidvest management team is seen approaching the apprehended Seabe and pulling the banner from her, “I was hurt in the scuff of the pulling, my pants got torn but it’s fine,” Seabe said.
She adds that even despite having exited the pitch and some fans applauding, Bidvest staff members were still unimpressed, “It was a bit violent to a certain extent even when I was off the pitch, PSL management was very upset.”
But it seems no one is as upset as her mother who believes fee protesters have already made their point, “My mom is livid! She keeps telling me I must stop, the country gets it now.”
Division over free accommodation at Wits
Affected students in a meeting with acting Dean of Students Lamese Abrahams discussing amongst other things, the plan to accommodate students preparing for exams. Photo: Michelle Gumede
by Masego Panyane and Michelle Gumede
HUNDREDS of Wits students will be temporarily accommodated for free after being left homeless on campus over the festive season, squatting in libraries and computer labs to prepare for their supplementary and deferred examinations.
This comes after the entire end-of-year examination timetable was reshuffled due to the #FeesMustFall protests that rocked the country late last year. Supplementary and deferred exam dates were pushed back to early January and many students stayed on campus to prepare. But many were left without accommodation as residences closed on December 1.
In protest against their lack of accommodation, many of the affected students with the Wits Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and Wits Fees Must Fall (FMF) staged a sit-in at the Senate House concourse, also known as Solomon House.
On Monday January 4, several Student Representative Council (SRC) members met with representatives from the All Res Council, the university administration and Wits EFF to agree that students writing deferred and supplementary exams would be accommodated on campus.
SRC projects, media and campaigns officer Mzwanele Ntshwanti said the SRC left for holidays on December 23. When the SRC arrived on campus in early January, they received and processed a list of the homeless compiled by a few students who had been staying in the library, concourse and computer labs. Ntshwanti said the SRC were already prepared that there might be a situation where a bulk of students would come from all over the country to write their exams. However, he said preparations stalled over how much it would cost the university.
“Conversations were started, they were just never concluded because the university was like ‘It’s gonna be costly and they were not willing to take the cost’,” Ntshwanti said.
This week’s agreement allows for 500 students, 300 male and 200 female, to be accommodated at Men’s Res and Jubilee respectively. Ntshwanti estimates the accommodation will cost the SRC R181 per night per student.
University officials could not be reached for comment by Wits Vuvuzela as of the time of posting this article.
Vuyani Pambo of Wits EFF said his organisation spent their holidays staging a sit in at Mens res, studying and consulting with students on possible solutions regarding the academic year ahead. Pambo says during their interaction with students it became more apparent that many students were on campus studying and doing vacation work to save up for their fees while being without accommodation.
On December 28, the Wits EFF staged a “let in” at Mens Res, where they opened up the residence for all homeless student which lead to conflict with campus control.
Pambo said they occupied Men’s Res only after attempting, unsuccessfully, to negotiate for accommodation for the homeless students with the university.
Although campus control was called to the Men’s Res, the students were never removed from the res and students are now coming in to sign up for accommodation since the agreement was publicised on social media by both the SRC and Wits EFF.
The procedure is that students have to go to cluster head Doreen Musemwa at Jubilee residence the day before their allocated exam date where their status for a deferred or supplementary exam is verified. Students must then go to the SRC offices to fill out forms and then they can then move into res. Students can stay at res until the day after their exam and will receive breakfast daily at the main dining hall for the duration of their stay.
Third-year mining student, Albert Sefadi* said that learning about the agreement on Facebook, he drove to Johannesburg from Mahikeng to sign up for the accommodation before his exam date. However, he says when he got to Jubilee on Tuesday he found that Musemwa was not around and he had to sleep in his car.
Sefadi was later assisted by the SRC on Wednesday and had completed all his paperwork, ready to move into his room by 10am.
There are some students who are distrustful of the arrangement. Rendani Dumah* a final-year education student and Wits FMF member decided to not take the offered accommodation.
“I don’t want to have the SRC telling people that they did stuff for me when they didn’t do anything,” said Dumah.
As of Friday, the occupation of Senate House has continued despite the dean of students sent the FMF group a letter demanding they leave the concourse.
*Affected students requested that Wits Vuvuzela change their names.
Wits EFF says ‘NO’ SRC
This week the Wits EFF caused a stir when they criticised the university for shifting its’ responsibilities to the the SRC and have called for ‘no SRC’.
The Wits Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) stopped the inaugurual debate of the SRC election campaign because student government only existed to “legitimise” university authorities.
“The university does not listen to students so the SRC is a body that is meant to legitimise the university because the statute requires every institution of higher learning to have an SRC,” said Wits EFF secretary Mbe Mbhele.
“We feel like at Wits it is just there so that university can be a legitimate body but it does not necessarily change anything. It is also strategic move on the part of the university because they are always shifting responsibility.”
“We are not going to use the normal and orthodox means of protest”
Mbhele made his comments to Wits Vuvuzela on Tuesday afternoon shortly after Wits EFF stopped the election debate by singing and toyi-toying on the stage. The debate was called off and a fight broke out between members of Project W, Progressive Youth Alliance and the Wits EFF on the Great Hall stage.
Mbhele said Wits EFF would continue to protest the SRC campaign and prevent the elections from taking place.
“We are going to go there and kick the ballot boxes and the IEC is not going to be able to count the votes,” said Mbhele.
“We are not going to use the normal and orthodox means of protest, if it means we are going to shit at the Great Hall or at his office then we are going to do that.”
Mbhele said the university has relied heavily on the SRC to help students through initiatives such as One Million, One Month, a fundraising drive for students who did not receive funding the National Students’ Financial Aid Scheme at the beginning of the year.
Mbhele said that the university should pay for student’s fees and accused it of paying bonuses to “[Vice Chancellor] Adam Habib and his minions.”
Mbhele said the lack of bus services for Wits students to taxi ranks at Bree and Noord were one example of how the SRC was unable to serve students.
“The bus issue has been raised in 2005 and in 2015 students are still complaining about the bus, 10 years later,” Mbhele said.
Mbhele said Wits EFF will use any means possible to force Habib to take their demands seriously.
After all that was said and done, Mbhele concluded the interview with these words “fuck Habib”.
Outsourced workers plan protest with sacked president
WORKERS AID: MJL Electrical workers outside the Great Hall before they got in to
the Vice Chancellor’s Town Hall meeting earlier this year. Photo: Sibongile Machika
Axed SRC president Mcebo Dlamini and Wits workers are planning a protest at the Great Hall today in solidarity with fellow outsourced workers.
The protest action will happen throughout lunch hour, but protestors say they will continue the strike for as long as it takes to get a positive response from management.
“I hope they will disturb the exams so that the university can take them seriously,” Dlamini said.
Wits university management has been in disputes over outsourced workers formerly employed by Wits contractor MJL Electrical. MJL workers have made several allegations against the company, including non-payment of salaries as well as tax fraud.
Dlamini said that the companies that the university enters into business exploit black workers. “The university is failing to protect those workers,” said Dlamini.
Richard Ndebele, of MJL Electrical, said the workers have met with Wits management several times yet no resolution has been found.
“We want Wits to consider a company that can absorb us, we’ve even suggested the names of companies that can do that but they don’t want to instead they (Wits) say it’s not their responsibility to do something for us,” said Ndebele.
Prof Beatrys Lacquet, the deputy vice chancellor of infrastructure and operations at Wits, has said that the university has paid what it owes MJL Electrical and the responsibility for the workers is on the company, not the university.
MJL workers are not the only outsourced workers to be unhappy with their lot at Wits. These workers, including those from Servest andUkweza, said they took a resolution on Friday that they will would protest in solidarity of MJL workers.
Ukweza worker, Tanya Khumalo* said she is supporting the strike because when workers from Ukweza were fired, workers employed by other outsourcing companies rallied in support of their reinstatement.
“Le rona tlamayile re ba thuse, batlo thola mosebetsi eming je ka rona bari thusitse, [We have an obligation to help them get other jobs, just like we were helped],” said Khumalo.
*Not real name.
UCT SRC not involved in organising ‘poo protest’
President of the The University of Cape Town (UCT) SRC (Student Representative Council), Ramabina Mahapa, has said that he and other SRC members were not involved in the organising of yesterday’s “poo protest”.
Instead, the organiser was a fourth-year politics student, Chumani Maxwele, who told Independent Online that he protested on behalf of “the collective pain and suffering” of all black people. He also said that he was calling for the removal of the statue.
UCT, he said, has no collective history, alleging that students are “offended” by the architecture and names of buildings on the campus. He then emptied a container of faeces over the statue of Cecil John Rhodes, on the university’s upper campus.
“This poo that we are throwing on the statue represents the shame of black people,” he told Independent Online. “By throwing it on the statue we are throwing our shame to whites’ affluence.”
However, according to Mahapa, the substance used in the protest was manure and not human faeces.
He told Wits Vuvuzela that he “does not condone the act” in terms of procedure and university regulation, but can “sympathise and understand” with Maxwele and his reasons.
“This is mainly because the university hasn’t ever listened to students,” he said.
The university yesterday released a statement that condoned “vandalism of UCT property” and the violation of “health laws”. The vice-chancellor’s office is instigating the incident and has demanded a comprehensive and immediate report.
RELATED STORIES:
Wits Vuvuzela, STORIFY: Poo protests at the University of Cape Town, March 10, 2015
STORIFY: Poo protests at the University of Cape Town
A group of UCT (University of Cape Town) students, including members of the SRC (Student Representatives Council), threw human excrement at a statue of Cecil John Rhodes earlier today, in protest against “white arrogance”.
If this storify does not load automatically, please click here.
https://storify.com/WitsVuvuzela/poo-protests-at-uct
Wits EFF student leaders ‘detained’ after Pretoria protest
Two Wits Economic Freedom Front (EFF) leaders were detained by police after occupying offices at the Department of Higher Education in Pretoria on Thursday.
LOCKED UP: Wits EFF chairperson Vuyani Pambo talks freedom and education following his detainment at the Department of Higher Education yesterday. Photo: Tendai Dube.
Vuyani Pambo and Mbe Mbhele were detained at a police station in Pretoria. “They took us to the station … after a while they realised they can not hold us,” said Wits EFF chairperson Vuyani Pambo who described the detainment as a “game of intimidation.”
On Thursday morning 17 EFF members travelled by train from Johannesburg to the Higher Education Department in Pretoria to address student concerns over the lack of funding by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). Almost 3 000 Wits students who had been promised funding by the scheme have been left unable to register for studies this year.
Pambo said that before the Pretoria protest, they engaged with the university to understand the issue with NSFAS but after careful investigation realised that “this is bigger than what we thought – we were barking at the wrong tree, the university is not accountable for a national crisis.”
Shortly after their arrival at the Pretoria offices the protesters sought a meeting with senior officials at the department, but were asked to move off the premises by a South African Police Service (SAPS) special crowd control unit, who later escorted the two student leaders to the station. While they were detained, no official arrests were made.
“They tried to pacify us,” said Pambo who described the police officer’s attitudes as “fathers offering advice to their children.”
Director for security services at the department Richard Zungu denies that the students were detained, saying “the students were not detained and no meeting took place, even though they wanted a meeting.”
“The department says it is unable to secure funds because it doesn’t have funding from the government,” said Wits EFF member Sive Mqikela who was present at the protest.
EFF’s member of parliament Andile Mngixtama, who was meeting with EFF chairperson Vuyani Pambo, told Wits Vuvuzela: “They are criminalizing the poor, criminalizing blackness … Here students are saying they want education which is a fundamental right and what comes is the intimidation of the state.”
Mngixtama believes the solution to South Africa’s education crisis is to remove the bursary system and implement a free education for poor students.
Both Pambo and Mbhele have since been released without charges laid against them.
RELATED ARTICLES:
- Wits Vuvuzela: Wits Management and SRC reach agreement on NSFAS, January 23 2015.
- Wits Vuvuzela: PYA gives Wits NSFAS ultimatum, February 5 2015.
- Wits Vuvuzela: Wits students protest NSFAS application complication, Januray 21 2015.
PYA gives Wits NSFAS ultimatum
VIVA: Wits students and staff march together in solidarity with students who were denied NSFAS funding. Photo: Ilanit Chernick
Wits University has been given twenty four hours to allow students without funding to register or face the prospect of disruptions.
Members of the Progressive Youth Alliance (PYA), South African Student Organisation (SASCO) and the Young Communist League (YCL) today handed a memorandum over to the dean of students, Dr Pamela Dube in the Senate House concourse. The group is demanding that Wits management “admit students now and solve the issues later”.
[READ MORE: Witsies face uncertain future without NSFAS]
Justice Mokotedi, chair of the Young Communist League at Wits, said protesting students would make the university “ungovernable” if their demands were not met on time.
“There will be no Sunday,” he said referring to the start of the Orientation Week programme starting this weekend.
“We have been sitting in meeting after meeting drinking coffee, our caffeine levels are high but we are tired. Sick and tired! We want answers!”
HAND IT OVER: Dean of Students, Dr Pamela Dube acknowledges receit of the PYA’s memorandum. Photo: Ilanit Chernick
He also accused management and vice chancellor Prof Adam Habib of being on a retreat while the protest was taking place.
“As this is happening and we are protesting for student rights, our VC is enjoying wine and whiskey on a retreat! We give Pamela this memorandum unapologetically.”
SRC (Student Representative Council), secretary general, Senzekahle Mbokazi, said students are protesting because “we cannot understand why there is so much confusion” between Wits and the Department of Higher Education.
Mbokazi said the SRC had been to speak to both the National Students Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and Wits.
“NSFAS claims that Wits is mismanaging funds and Wits is saying they were not allocated enough money. In the meantime 2788 students are being held to ransom. More pressure needs to be put on the university,” she said.
As the march progressed throughout the day, protestors blocked the university’s central Yale Road to vent their frustrations.
“We will block campus roads,” said SASCO chairperson Nthabiseng Molefe as she addressed the crowd. “We will show management that we are in control!”
Wits students protest NSFAS application complications
PAINED: A PYA member calls for students to unite in solidarity with those unable to pay the upfront registration fee. Photo: Ilanit Chernick
Around 60 Witsies gathered at Senate House on Wednesday to protest the upfront fee expected from NSFAS students.
Students who are awaiting National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) approval have been asked to pay a registration fee of R4 670.
The protesters sang “My mother was a kitchen girl, my father was a garden boy” and chanted “NSFAS voetsek! NSFAS voetsek!” while dancing.
Members of the Wits Student Representative Council (SRC), Progressive Youth Alliance, the Wits Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and Project W attended the protest.
SRC president Mcebo Dlamini told protesters that Wits management was denying “poor students an education”. He called on Vice-chancellor Prof Adam Habib and management to waive the upfront fee.
“This has never happened at Wits. Why now? Only rich students can study here. We the students demand that you do away with these fee,” Dlamini said.
SNAP THAT: A PYA member takes photos as students protest outside the Great Hall. Photo: Ilanit Chernick
Secretary of the Wits EFF Mbe Mbhele accused NSFAS of having a policy to exclude black students at Wits and around academic institutions.
“It is only black students who are affected. This exclusion is a reflection of what is happening around South Africa. If it is not resolved we will take radical action,” Mbhele said.
Deputy Vice-chancellor of Academics Prof Andrew Crouch told Wits Vuvuzela that the upfront fee for NSFAS beneficiaries would only affect about 400 students. However, it was not possible to waive their upfront fees.
“If we waiver the fee for 400 students, which is 12 percent of students, than we would have to waiver the complete registration fee [of R9 340] for all Wits Students. We have to be fair here. Bear in mind 88% of students pay full fees,” Crouch said.
Crouch also said that the university are doing their best to deal with the situation.
He said that NSFAS give Wits four types of allocations for funding. The university is trying to move money from three of the four allocations into the NSFAS general allocation to allow for at least 400 students whose applications are pending to receive funding.
“The process will be completed by February,” he said.
Following the protest a joint press conference was held between the SRC and university management.
Habib told reporters that the issue was out of Wits’ hands and that NSFAS had given strict instructions to Wits not to go over its NSFAS bursary allocation as the university had done in 2013 and 2014.
“If we had the money to hand out we would but we just can’t at the moment.”
Habib said the reason behind the high upfront registration fee is because the government subsidy only comes into play from April each year.
“We have to make up the deficits of the first three months of the year and part of the money used to pay staff salaries and fund the university through this period is through the registration fee.”
Dlamini accused Habib of being “politically correct”.
“Our VC is playing politics,” he said. “It’s a sad moment, the university wants to eat its own like a pig.”
CALL TO ORDER: A member of the EFF calls for management to explain themselves to students. Photo: Ilanit Chernick
Dlamini also blamed Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande for not taking the NSFAS issue and the Wits SRC seriously.
“When we met with the minister he kept joking and talking about Nkandla,” Dlamini said. “We just hope he listened to us. He must start taking education seriously and allocate more money for higher education before students end up on the streets.”
Some students on Twitter had also threatened violence if students were excluded over a lack of NSFAS funding. Habib warned that violence on campus would be taken “seriously by the law”. Students found to be involved “in such actions will be expelled” with no chance to reapply to the university in the future.
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