Wamkelekile, Welkom
Laying funding problems at government's feet
26 October 2016 | Story by Newsroom
Today, the Minister of Finance tabled the 2016 Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) in Parliament. Three public protests were given permission to march to Parliament: the UCT staff unions (the UCT Academics Union, the Employees Union and NEHAWU), Fees Must Fall and the Students' Representative Council of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, and the Democratic Alliance.
In order to show their solidarity with students and staff at UCT and at other universities across the country, the UCT executive invited participation in the various marches to Parliament today in the hope that this would refocus the campaign for affordable higher education on government and the national policy process.
Members of the UCT executive joined the staff unions in their march, using the opportunity to make it clear that it is government that must solve the current university fee crisis because the universities cannot do so alone.
Vice Chancellor Dr Max Price said that although government had introduced plans to fix the funding problems in higher education, the Heher fees commission would take too long to implement and that solutions were needed now to prevent the ongoing disruptions on university campuses.
Price was part of a group of academics, university staff and parents who handed over a memorandum demanding that universities and students be adequately funded.
Photo Paul Weinberg.
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