SASCO CAPE TOWN STATEMENT ON THE STATE OF CPUT Vol 2

Lest we forget the saying “a bird does not destroy its own nest.”

In Volume 1 we covered quite a number of issues ranging from the absence of the LSRC to the unruly behaviour of the LSRC Chairperson to the behavior of CPUT management alongside its staff members.

In volume two we will stick to the burning issue which is the campus shutdown for two days (Friday, 25 August and Monday, 28 August 2017). In the past week we witnessed our campus come to a standstill as a result of a protest organised by PASMA and EFFSC collectively, which they later went on to deny. This protest was rooted in enforcing an exception to the institutions residence policy which states that any student with an intention to be admitted to any CPUT residence should not be residing within a 60 kilometer radius from the institution and that they need to pass at least 65% of their modules.

Initially, on Friday, we witnessed the Admin Building being closed down as a result of the protest which was later extended to the closing of classes with the enforcement of fire extinguishers.

As SASCO, we condemn the violent acts that the two parties showed during the protest. We can never applaud the act that was portrayed by some leaders. Many students were taken out of classes and exam venues with the use of fire extinguishers. This could have led to serious health complications for many students and that we cannot shy away from. Today we also noticed the acts of trying to shut down the campus which led to turning the campus into a war zone where a lot of students were at harm’s way as private securities were shooting their guns and stunt grenades on defense of the stones thrown by these students.

As SASCO we placed students at EWR, Cape Suits and NMJ in the past 3 weeks and we did this without disrupting any academic or admin activity. This is something we believe the two parties could have also executed without having the campus on a standstill. It is worth mentioning that all the students we placed at these residences were placed by force and not mutual agreement with the management. The management was forced to accept the situation as it could not just remove those students without having alternative accommodation measures in place.

We informed the management that we are placing students because there were vacant spaces and we are placing students in those spaces. This is something we believe the two parties could have been done instead of violent strikes. Above our differences in policies and beliefs, the placement should be done for the general students of CPUT.

As stated previously in our Volume 1 statement, as SASCO we do not endorse any victimisation of students by the institution. We have witnessed on numerous occasions, students being victimised by the institution for standing their ground and advocating for the liberation of all students, more especially the total liberation of African students. The system has acted in a way that seeks to silence student leaders and ensures that they are hesitant to fully execute their duties as student leaders and thus operate on a “yes mam, no mam” basis.

As SASCO we are still pro saving our institution from all that has been happening however, we would like to correct the rumor that has been going around saying that it's the #SaveOurInstitution campaign that led to the suspension of the Cape Town LSRC Chairperson and the three other students. We have never called upon the suspension of any student in our campaign. We believe that there are many ways to discipline someone (as stated in the rule book) other than suspension. Secondly, if students are to closely look at the suspension letter of the suspended students, no member from SASCO laid a complaint against the LSRC Chairperson nor did any member stand as a witness to the charge. The case was laid by the Acting VC and all witnesses are Executive Management members and not someone from SASCO.

We also note the victimization of our members by PASMA members that claim that SASCO is the brains behind the suspensions. As SASCO we do not take it lightly that some of our members are being harassed and falsely accused for wrongs that they had nothing to do with. We have also had numerous SRC deployees and members in the past suspended for one reason or another and collectively we have been able to fight those suspensions without causing disruptions in the institution. We fought for the proper procedures to be followed by the institution.

Will continue to call upon saving our institution from corruption. Saving it from no transparency. Saving it from lack of accountability. Saving it from lack of administration. Saving it from the lack of university academic programs. Saving it from populism.

As SASCO we seek to champion the interests of students and not just SASCO members. We seek to ensure access and success in this institution.

Issued by:

Luchulumanco Nanto
Branch Secretary
062 685 4615

Nomzamo Madalane
Branch Chairperson
076 565 5284