Time to take the politics out of student councils
I HAVE been a student at NMMU for three years – 3½ if you count my brief and misguided foray into BCom Law.
In that time, I have always wondered what my Student Representative Council (SRC) does for me, apart from e-mailing me about what they do for me.
As far as I could tell, they were only ever those people who frantically ran around exchanging red or blue T-shirts for votes once a year.
I like a free T-shirt just as much as the next born-free, but not when terms and conditions may apply. And if outfitting students with the latest in political fashion is the only thing that the SRC is recognisable for, why do we need them?
Asked to comment, Democratic Alliance Student Organisation (Daso) secretary at NMMU , Baxolile Nodada, listed various initiatives to aid students.
These ranged from facilitating much-needed shuttle services to raising R10-million for student financial aid for many students in residence.
These are noble but there is no reason why these strategies could not have been spearheaded by a group of like-minded individuals rather than a party.
Nodada said political organisations are necessary in governance as they have a backbone of values by which their members can be held accountable.
Yet there is no reason for this backbone to not exist in a group comprised of individuals. The only difference is that an individual is perhaps more accountable because they don’t have a party to hide behind when it comes to passing the buck.
Pedro Mzileli, regional executive committee member of the SA Students’ Congress (Sasco) at NMMU said the presence of political parties on campus prepares students for especially understanding the political climate of this country.
I disagree. The current generation of 18-25 year-old university students is perhaps one of the most politically aware generation in the history of our democracy. We have our own opinions about the state of our country and these are no longer rehashed versions of what mommy and daddy say at the dinner table.
Our ability to access information is better than ever before. If we want to know anything more about political organisations other than that they exist – we can access it ourselves.
In fact, it’s our responsibility to educate ourselves. We don’t need parties on campus asking for our “pretend vote” so that we know how to do it when we’re big and strong.
ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane said SRCs are important in nurturing the future leaders of our country and their presence helps to anchor the freedom charter on campus.
Yet, a council of individuals without political influence does the same thing. It teaches its members the importance of accountability and, if anything, how to work with people who may not necessarily share the exact same views as you.
We need to stop making student politics about whether the blue team or the red team or the other-other red team wins.
Yes, the SRC is necessary. Yet, its duties and initiatives can be realised without the presence of political parties. In some cases, they can be realised even better.
The student governing body is not only those in the SRC chambers. We are the SRC.