Central Student Representative Council (CSRC) delegates
present among us
Chairperson of the Local Student Representative Council
(LSRC) of the biggest Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) campus
The LSRC of the CPUT Cape Town campus
Leaders from respective student structures present among us
Student and alumnus attending as observers
Humbly receive my greetings.
It can’t be argued that thus far, this has been one of the
most challenging times our institution has ever faced. In 2015 we all witnessed
the rise of young people across the country, taking a stand under a unified
banner of the #FeesMustFall movement, where they audibly stated that Fees Must
Fall and free education must be the result thereof. It is at this point in time
where the English and the late MK veteran, Solomon Mahlangu, would in chorus agree,
that the struggle for a free qualitative education system in South Africa must continue
as Rome was not built in a day. Nevertheless, the channels we utilise to get to the land over flowing
with milk and honey, which is a South Africa with a free and qualitative
education system, will determine our tomorrow, as we have seen violent students
protest have led to the arrest of 78 students and suspension of 34 students
including myself.
NATIONAL
FINANCIAL AIDS SCHEME (NSFAS)
It is no undisclosed matter that the National Student
Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) lacks funds. It was estimated in 2013 by the
former acting CEO of NSFAS, Nathan Johnstone, that NSFAS needs to triple its
budget in order to cater for all the students who require financial assistance.
As a result of NSFAS not paying for over 2 000 students in the previous year a
number of students’ dreams were shattered this year after they were financially
excluded by CPUT. This shortfall amounted to R 36, 7 million.
I would like to make it clear that the Cape Peninsula
University of Technology (CPUT) does not have NSFAS offices within any of its
campus. It only has the financial aid offices whereby the National Financial
Aid Scheme (NSFAS) acts as a donor to. By filing in the Financial Aid form for
financial assistance, it does not mean a student is directly applying for NSFAS
but for financial assistance be it bursaries, scholarships or loans. NSFAS has offices in Wynberg, where all their
admin is operated.
Challenges we face with NSFAS this year were:
·
Late applications
·
First year applications
·
Applications for returning students that took a
gap year
·
NSFAS not dispatching book and meal vouchers in
due time to its beneficiaries
·
Late payments
LATE
APPLICATIONS
NSFAS applications for returning students for the academic
year 2016 closed on the last working day of August 2015. Countless students
could not submit their application forms for various reasons, with a large
number of students who could not submit due to incomplete required documents.
Those that could not apply for NSFAS in the previous year were not granted the
opportunity to submit their documents for financial assistance for this
academic year. The LSRC engaged countless times with the Financial Aid office
Head of Department (HOD) Ms. K. Ntabiseng, and the Acting Director of Finance,
Ms. M. Jeftha with regards to this matter, unfortunately, CPUT was not in
control of this matter and we were directed to NSFAS of which NSFAS refused.
What has been advised to students by the Finance and
Projects Office, is that if they go back home in June, they ought to gather all
the documents they will require for NSFAS application for 2017. Those are
documents that they know they are difficult to get hold of when they are far
away from home. To help ease the
congestion of students who could not be assisted by NSFAS, we are currently
interacting with departments and corporates to fund students financially.
FIRST YEAR
APPLICATIONS
A great number of first year students applied for NSFAS this
year. The service they received was a poor one whereby we had to interfere and
assist with verifying of documents just to ease up the congestion of long lines
for submission of application of financial aid. Initially, there were only 2
workers present and gradually moved to four workers who were accepting forms
from students. This assisted by students
being assisted faster than before. It’s
sad to see a tradition emerging whereby even some first years could submit
their forms in due time because of the many documents required by NSFAS.
APPLICATION
FOR STUDENTS WHO TOOK A GAP YEAR
There were cases of students who last studied at CPUT more
than 5 years ago and the people meant to assist them where not willing because
those applicants where somewhat classified as “old” and were told NSFAS would
not assist them due to age and an old student number. We had to intervene in
such cases and students who brought this matter to the attention of their
constitutionally recognized Student Representative Council were assisted.
BOOK AND
MEAL VOUCHERS NOT DISPATCHED IN DUE TIME TO ITS BENEFICIARIES
It is with utmost disgust that I have to report that all
eligible students have not yet received their due meal and book vouchers yet we
approaching an end towards an end of the first semester. I fail to understand
how students are expected to flourish when it comes to academics yet they do
not have the necessary support. This is
not only faced by students of NSFAS but also some students that are beneficiaries
of a number of bursaries. This left us
with no choice but to shoot straight to the Acting Director of Finance who
stated that students have not been properly allocated funding and still have to
sign Loan Agreement Forms. The Selections process is currently underway. The
process was delayed due to the 2015 examinations and reassessments taking place
in 2016 as well as 2016 registrations only being finalized in March 2016.
Nevertheless qualifying students will be receiving communication from the
Financial Aid Office shortly about an interim meal allowance as well as a book
account to be opened on their behalf.
CERTIFICATES
BEING WITHHELD
Students whose debts were cleared where not granted the
opportunity to have their respective certificates, be it an ND or BTech
certificate. We engaged with the HOD of Students Debtors and told us that this
is the strict instruction they had received from the VC and they were obliged to
follow it. When we consulted the VC in the presence of the Acting Director of
Finance in a Crisis Committee this was rectified and all students whose debts
were cleared can now receive their certificates.
CREDIT
MANAGEMENT UNIT (CMU)
The CMU process was one that was straining. Its processes
for the academic year 2016 worked in a way that if your debt is over R50 000.00,
you were are required to pay 50% of your debt upfront and the remaining balance
would be settled within a period of 10 months by means of a debit order.
Example, if you owe the institution R70 000.00, it is required that you pay R35
000.00 upfront and the rest you will settle over ten months period. Meaning you
expected to pay R3 500.00 per month to the institution. If your debt is less
than R50 000, they push for you to pay 50% of your debt but took what was offered
to them and the remaining balance still has to be paid over a period of 10
months. Example, if you owed R40 000 to the institution, they pushed for you to
pay round about R18 000 and the rest will paid over a period of ten months. If
you make a counteroffer of R5 000, they are forced to take it and the remaining
balance of R35 000 will be paid over a period of ten months by a debit order of
R3 500 per month.
We saw this 10 months period as an unreasonable one more especially
if your debt is over R10 000. These are measures put in place to reduce the
dignity of the poor and to deprive them of their basic constitutional right to
education. We had countless talk with the management for financial exclusion
not to take place for the academic year 2016 and for also called for an
extension in the payment period to 24 months instead of 10 months and
regrettably they refused.
The CMU processes this year was not meant to assist students
but rather to exclude them where even the Financial Aid office was not part of
the process and they did not even consider you academic output but only the
amount due to the institution.
The late former president of the Republic of South Africa,
Dr Nelson R. Mandela, once said education
is the most powerful weapon one can use to change the world. How are we
expected to change the world when we are being deprived of that same education?
I do not understand how the youth is expected to change the world if they are
constantly deprived of their right to education due to their economic status.
FINANCIAL
LIST
There was a financial assistance list we had taken where all
students that needed financial assistance were noted down and their names were
sent to the Dean of Students. The aim was of this was to hang the debt of
students that are hampering them from becoming registered students in this
academic year. Unfortunately, not all students could be assisted. Somewhere and
some could not be.
DEBT
CLEARANCE CRITERIA
Debt clearance took place in the first two weeks of November
2015 after council had reach consensus on October 30, 2016. The clearance of
debts happened for over 5 000 students. The criterion used for the clearance of
debts is something we constantly questioned, as we found that the clearance of
debt did not happen as per the council resolution of October 2015. Some
students who did not fit in that criterion had their debt written off. We were
asked to bring fourth all the names of students whose debts were written off
yet they did not meet the requirements for debts clearance. We refused to bring
any name forward for we felt that this would be selfish of us.
CSRC AND
MANAGEMENT FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE (CMFC)
2016 saw the establishment of the CMFC which is a
fundraising task team with the aim to assist all needy, academically deserving
students who cannot afford to pay fees. This committee seeks to assist by means
of coverage for registration fee and funding BTech’s as most students don’t
have funds to cover their BTech tuition fees. This is evidence by the number of
BTech certificates CPUT is still withholding. The committee also feels that
there are fair opportunities for first to third year students as they are most
likely to be covered by NSFAS of a bursary. Bearing in mind that NSFAS only
covers your first qualification, this among the reason why the committee felt
the need to put BTech student s first on the platter.
FUNDING
On January 13,
2016, a communique was sent by the Department of Higher Education to all
Vice-Chancellor's with regards to the shortfall of funds as the result of the
no fee increment as declared by the President on January 8. From that
communique it was stated that, there is R2.543 billion that has been allocated
as a loan to 71 753 students NSFAS had identified that were eligible to receive
funding from the NSFAS but were either partially paid or not funded at all. An
additional R2.039 billion was to be also paid as additional support to ensure
they complete their studies.
Since a total debt of R 111 million was cleared of 5 301 students,
CPUT could not receive funding from NSFAS to cover for this. To access the
funds the institution would need to reinstate the debt to each students fee
account, the student would then have to sign the required Loan Agreement Form,
and the form would then be submitted this to NSFAS in order to claim the funds.
We also faced a
challenge of students who debts had been handed over to debt collectors have to
settle their debts before they can be permitted to register for this academic
year. Our proposal was that the normal CMU processes apply to them as well. It
would work in a way that students would bring forth their proof of arrangement
made with the debt collectors and an upfront payment that a student can afford.
However the issue of policy was brought up again that we cannot go against the
Debt Management Policy which states that students
who have been handed over have been handed over after due process has been
followed internally over a period of more than six months
CPUT was
allocated R 289 million for the academic year 2016 of which it received 30% of
it, R 86 700 000, was paid upfront on January 7. The remaining
portion of CPUT’s allocation from NSFAS will only be received once students
have been properly allocated funding and have signed the required Loan
Agreement Forms. Even though the institution also received R 73 million from
NSFAS to assist with the upfront payment which was not an essential requirement
for registration for this year there was still a detrimental loss of R 86
million in upfront cash receipts for 2016. A further R 78 million was allocated
to CPUT from the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) in respect
of the 0% fee increment.
At present CPUT
is still owed R 265 659 992.40 in tuition fees by past and present students. The
total impact our institution faced as a result of no fee increment and -3% on
residence fees was Total impact –R 99 088 783. With that being said the
budget across all departments were cut by 60% and the SRC budget went from R
1,8 million in the past to R 700 000 of which is allocated as follows
The amount allocated to the LSRC is R788 400 less the amount committed to
assist students to register R106 700 = R681 700, which is subdivided as
|
KEY
PERFORMANCE AREAS (KPA)
|
AMOUNT
|
|
Administration
(10%)
|
R68 170.00
|
|
Entertainment
(25%)
|
R170 425.00
|
|
Transport &
Accommodation (15%)
|
R102 255.00
|
|
Structure
Subsidies (30%)
|
R204 510.00
|
|
Community
Partnerships/Social Responsibility (10%)
|
R68 170.00
|
|
Student
Developments Projects (10%)
|
R68 170.00
|
|
TOTAL
|
R681 700.00
|
Drafted by
LUCHULUMANCO
NANTO
FINANCE AND
PROJECTS OFFICER
ACTING FACULTY OF
INFORMATICS AND DESIGN (FID) REPRESENTATIVE
CAPE TOWN CAMPUS
LOCAL STUDENT
REPRESENTATIVE COUNCIL (LSRC)
CAPE PENINSULA
UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY (CPUT)
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