Sasco turn to the courts on eviction
Student body wants order overturned
SASCO at Walter Sisulu University’s (WSU) Mthatha campus has asked the courts to nullify an eviction order which removed thousands of students from campus last week.
WSU Mthatha Sasco campus chairman Kanya Kenqa said they had opted for court action because they had lost faith in negotiations between management and the SRC.
“The management is playing a delaying tactic while students are losing out on study time. There have been constant meetings that have not yielded any positive results.”
Kenqa said approaching the courts was a desperate move that sought to speed up the process.
He said students were supposed to be preparing for final examinations, but were hanging around at home in limbo.
Sasco’s attorney Bulela Krewu told Saturday Dispatch yesterday they had sent a letter to management demanding a copy of the court directive which, according to the order, states that any eviction could only take place when the court had given such directive.
He said they gave the university until 9am yesterday to respond, but it did not.
He said the next step would be to approach the High Court to set aside the eviction.
WSU spokeswoman Yonela Tukwayo was not available for comment. A meeting between management and the parents of SRC members was cancelled on Thursday. The SRC has told management they want to end the protest.
“We commit that we will work tirelessly in good faith with the management to recover the academic time lost and heal the environment that compromises vibrant university life and help uplift the good name of WSU,” said the SRC members and their parents and guardians in a signed statement.