Blade, Tvet leaders come to terms in ‘productive’ meeting
COLLEGE students have suspended their nationwide boycott.
Technical and vocational education and training (Tvet) college leaders have now given the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) two weeks to deliver outstanding certificates.
Two weeks ago, Tvet colleges around the country ground to a halt as students embarked on the protest boycott because of the late delivery of certificates, among other issues.
In the Eastern Cape, Buffalo City, Lovedale and King Hintsa Tvet colleges joined the national campaign.
The action follows an announcement by the South African Further Education and Training Student Association (Safetsa) that the country’s 50 Tvet colleges would close to protest against weak leadership, infrastructure issues, corruption, use of unqualified lecturers and delays in issuing certificates.
Speaking to the Daily Dispatch yesterday, Safetsa general secretary Sibusiso Ntshibongo said they met with DHET Minister Blade Nzimande in Pretoria on Friday to discuss “pressing issues” at colleges.
Ntshibongo said even though not all their issues were addressed at the meeting, resolutions were taken on the more urgent problems such as outstanding certificates, expansion of student enrolment and their challenges with the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSfas).
“The department committed itself to the 14 days cut-off date and we decided to suspend the shutdown, pending the implementation of the resolutions taken at the meeting,” said Ntshibongo.
A press release issued by the department called the meeting productive and promised that college administrators would be engaged as a matter of urgency to ensure that students with pending results were accommodated during this academic year; that the NSfas would extend its closing deadline by two weeks; and the State Information Technology Agency would ensure a speedy resolution to the backlog of outstanding certificates.
“If there are still students without certificates after two weeks, we will lift the suspension on the shutdown and ensure the campaign intensifies by getting lecturers, staff and the community to join in,” said Ntshibongo.
Ntshibongo said classes had commenced at all Tvet colleges on Monday.
The DHET said the meeting had resulted in several important milestones.
Nzimande commended Safetsa for highlighting the challenges faced by Tvet students. “I must commend Safetsa for this. “We are working tirelessly to ensure that the legitimate issues they have raised that are under our control are speedily attended to,” said Nzimande.