NMU campuses shut down amid protests
NELSON Mandela University (NMU) shut down a number of its campuses yesterday due to mass protests. The institution advised that all tests planned had also been postponed.
The South African Student Congress (Sasco) embarked on protest action this morning, which has seen the university’s north‚ south and Second Avenue campuses closed.
“Vehicle access to some Nelson Mandela University campuses has been closed as a result of today’s action by protesting students‚” NMU’s Emergency Management Team said.
“Academic staff are asked to communicate with their classes offering alternative learning work opportunities. All tests for today [Wednesday] are postponed and new dates to hand in assignments will be communicated.
“Similarly‚ professional support staff should liaise directly with their line managers in terms of the way forward. This is particularly critical for those who work in essential services. The present status on the ground is fluid but we will endeavour to keep you updated.”
Sasco said in a statement that their concerns included on-campus safety and security‚ financial aid and the state of residences.
“Sasco is extremely concerned about the expectation of the university for poor students to continue with academic activities under the atrocious conditions we find ourselves [in] as far as financial aid is concerned.
“It cannot be that a certain group of students is expected to continue with tests‚ exams and assignments without textbooks‚ meals and the relevant support material they would have received from NSFAS. We cannot accept that our campuses have become spaces where women are being raped and harassed‚ students are being robbed and unauthorised personnel are walking around our campuses with arms.
“The failure of the NSFAS system to respond to the students‚ specifically in off-campus properties‚ has caught a situation whereby the students are continuously abused by res managers of having to pay rent whilst they are still waiting for their funding‚” the statement read.