NMMU beefs up security
Cops suspect #FeesMustFall movement after petrol-bomb attack on office block
NELSON Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) has clamped down on security after a building on the south campus was petrolbombed at the weekend, sparking fears of another #FeesMustFall protest in the pipeline.
Police spokesman Captain Johan Rheeder said a case of arson was being investigated after a bag of stones was thrown through the glass door of the procurement building on Saturday night, and two petrol bombs set off inside.
Graffiti on the walls of the building carried the “FeesMustFall” slogan, as well as demands for “100% free education”, “ANC must fall” and “Zuma must fall”.
When The Herald visited the south campus yesterday, the scene was cordoned off with police tape and several campus security vehicles and guards were present.
Blue spray-painted profanities such as “f**k you” were still visible on the walls.
Inside the building the damage was extensive, with the walls of the foyer area blackened, photographs hanging on the walls destroyed and a glass table smashed.
The incident, a week into the 2017 academic year, was a stark reminder of last year’s protests, which saw a string of students arrested, the Xanadu Melody clubhouse burnt to the ground and the parking lot next to the female residence, Veritas, set alight amid violent protest action.
The university battled to keep its doors open for several weeks towards the end of last year.
Yesterday, NMMU vice-chancellor Derrick Swartz said: “This is simply unacceptable, blatantly criminal and has no place in a democratic order.”
Rheeder said police suspected the #FeesMustFall movement was behind the incident.
Swartz said: “We know this does not represent the vast majority of those campaigning for ‘free’ higher education, but there should be no ambiguity about how utterly wrong this is.
“We should firmly reject the notion often put forward by apologists that violence is somehow justified by the existence of structural violence such as poverty, inequality and unemployment.
“In a democratic order, it has no legal or moral basis. One cannot live by the rights of our constitution during the day, and, when it suits you, seek to live outside of its obligations by night.
“Once you embark on this dangerous and highly flawed reasoning, it means any acts of wanton violence, including taking of lives, burning of libraries and hurting innocent people can be justified in an inescapably circular logic.
“And of course, as history shows, the very same violence is often turned against you. We must urgently bring to an end this spectre of violence before it is too late.”
NMMU spokeswoman Zandile Mbabela said the university had, from today, put into place a range of extraordinary measures to patrol all buildings, tighten physical security and access, and include special steps to control movement during after-hour periods, especially around critical infrastructure.
“We will also be setting up a special anonymous hotline for anyone with information,” she said.
Robert Griebenow, a founding member of Captu (Concerned Association of Parents and Others for Tertiary Education at Universities), said he was not surprised that the destruction at NMMU had started up again.
“There were no repercussions for the students behind last year’s violence, so I am not at all surprised.
“Petrol bombing a building . . . that is very serious, something like that could place people’s lives in danger,” Griebenow said.
Captu was formed in October to compel the university to reopen its doors, with threats of legal action.
Nathi Dwayi, who was at the forefront of last year’s #FeesMustFall protest, said he had no knowledge of what had occurred at the procurement building.
“#FeesMustFall is not a structured movement, so some people operate on their own. I am as clueless as you guys are as to what exactly happened [on Saturday night]. I only know what I have read on social media,” Dwayi said.
A spokesman for the movement, Azola Dayile, could not be reached for comment.
He did, however, take to Facebook to criticise the media for sensationalising the arson attack.
“Sensationalism again. Talking about petrol bombs as if this is some guerrilla warfare. Also, students, who are both black and poor, are implicitly framed as the prime suspects way before the burning.
“Chickens, as they put it, will always come home to roost. Perhaps that is why they cross roads,” Dayile wrote on his personal Facebook page.
Meanwhile, Mbabela said the university would not rest until the perpetrators were brought to book. “We reject criminal acts masquerading behind ostensible political claims for free higher education,” she said.
“The university is of the belief that a handful of violent elements have inserted themselves among legitimate student organisations to sow a climate of fear and insecurity.”
National Tertiary Education Union general secretary Grant Abbott said while it was the third building on campus to be burnt, this time the act seemed more personal.
“It is a big concern. This is the first time an office block where staff work has been targeted. It definitely instills fear in the staff and students,” he said.
The NMMU DA Students’ Organisation called for calm on campus.
We must urgently bring to an end this spectre of violence before it is too late