At Mangosuthu University of Technology (MUT) in Umlazi south of Durban, staff and students were protesting after they handed over a memorandum to the management of MUT.
MUT students have stood with the striking staff who demand a salary increase of 8%. Unfortunately, police needed to intervene as the protest outside MUT became violent.
Recently Kwazi Mshengu, the Provincial Education MEC, has met with the university management and student representatives to discuss the staff salary increment and student issues.
According to the Chairperson of the SRC Sinalo Thengwa, the students would like MUT to allow students who owe outstanding fees to be able to register for the 2021 academic year.
“One of the issues that made us embark on a mass demonstration is the issue of financial exclusion. 9000 plus [students] at this point are not financially cleared at MUT because they are owing to the institution,” said Thengwa.
The Chairperson of the SRC explained that: “We are in the pandemic, our parents are retrenched, they are not working, we don’t have money to pay the institution. What we are fighting for is that the institution must financially clear us so that we can register. Mangosuthu [University] is having a population of 13 000 plus students, but at this point, only 2000 students managed to get registered. The majority of students are unregistered.”
These MUT students also have not received their academic transcripts and/or qualifications due to them still having outstanding fees.
Thengwa has also stated that many MUT students have not received their laptops, which they need to successfully learn online. Therefore, the SRC demands that the university distribute these laptops.
Meanwhile, the Durban University of Technology has decided to close all its five campuses after Thursday’s protest.
On Friday morning metro police cleared a protest which took place outside Unisa’s city building.
