Lifting veil on fees activists

Kalla chief protagonist, says colleague

THE former University of Witwatersrand SRC president Shaeera Kalla, who is recovering in hospital after being hit by 13 rubber bullets on Thursday as claimed‚ is one of the founders of the #FeesMustFall movement.

Her shooting and claims of “police brutality” are now the subject of an Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) probe.

Although active on social media‚ Kalla has shied away from being a media spokeswoman for the movement despite playing an important role at the time of its genesis.

A Mail&Guardian report stated fellow student leader and current Wits SRC president, Nompendulo Mkhatshwa‚ said Kalla was the one who came up with the idea to protest against student fees last year.

“When we left that council meeting‚ we were both very angry. Shaeera was like‚ ‘Let’s protest. Do you think the comrades will be fine with that?’ I said‚ ‘Shaeera‚ just tell them.’ So we called a meeting and that was that.” “Students said ‘yes’ to the protest.” Kalla‚ Mkhatswa‚ and another former Wits SRC president‚ Mcebo Dlamini, who is currently in custody on protest-related charges and Wits Economic Freedom Fighters Student Command chairman, Vuyani Pambo, made headlines last year as faces of the movement.

Although she gets likened to iconic stalwarts such as Fatima Meer‚ Rahima Moosa there is little personal information available about Kalla.

She has a Bachelor of Commerce in Politics‚ Philosophy and Economics from Wits University and is currently a postgraduate political science student. The 23-year-old student leader hails from Laudium‚ a predominantly Indian suburb in Pretoria. — TMG Digital