Warning on plan for free education
Zuma’s future son-in-law’s funding model would be disaster – Jansen
IF President Jacob Zuma moved ahead with an alleged plan to announce free education across the board through a controversial funding scheme, it would spell disaster for the country, a leading educationalist said. TimesLIVE yesterday exclusively revealed that the plan, apparently devised by Zuma’s future son-in-law, Morris Masutha, and which would also fly in the face of official ANC policy, could see the cutting back of department budgets across the government to make R40-billion available for the 2018 academic year.
Zuma has been withholding the 748-page Heher Commission report, in which retired judge Jonathan Heher reportedly found that universal free tertiary education was not feasible.
Leading educationalist Professor Jonathan Jansen said for universities, fees were a recurrent cost which had to be paid from government coffers every year.
“There are over one million people every year and growing who will expect free education as of right. We don’t have money for this recurring expenditure,” he said.
He said submissions made to the Heher Commission showed that fee-free higher education was not attainable at present.
“I think this idea of a fee-free higher education for all is fundamentally unfair. Kids who are rich and who can pay must pay and those who cannot afford it but are eligible should not pay.
“Let us hope the speculation that the president will announce free higher education for all is wrong, because it is unsustainable.”
Masutha, who is engaged to be married to Thuthukile Zuma, the president’s youngest daughter with Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, referred questions to Treasury.
“I think you might want to get input from those respective departments [Presidency, Higher Education, and national Treasury] . . . And not me personally,” he said.
The Presidency said Zuma had no announcements scheduled imminently.
Masutha, who has apparently acted as Zuma’s “point man” on the fees issue, has made presentations to ANC officials and an inter-ministerial cabinet committee on his self-devised funding plan, which essentially revises the Treasury’s entire budget.
It is understood that following Zuma’s sudden cabinet reshuffle last month, Masutha was introduced to new Higher Education and Training Minister Hlengiwe Mkhize and Deputy Minister Buti Manamela as the president’s “adviser”.
Zuma has apparently assigned Minister in the Presidency Jeff Radebe and director-general Mpumi Mpofu the task of implementing the plan, which requires cutbacks in department budgets to make funding available.
Mpofu, who was appointed in July, is said to have been working with a team from Treasury to “find the money for Zuma”.
If the plan is moved on, it is likely to cause chaos throughout the state system.
It also undermines Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba’s statements when he presented the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement last month.
He said a funding shortfall of more than R61-billion over the next three years would be created if the government were to finance the full cost of study for 40% of undergraduates.
He said further announcements on higher education funding would be made in the February budget.
If Masutha’s plan is adopted, it could be an instant trigger for a junk status credit downgrade by ratings agencies.
But, sources say, Zuma has disregarded the Treasury and the Heher Commission’s findings, and believes his future son-in-law has found a solution to the higher education crisis.