Registration fees fall

After months of simmering discontent, students at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) yesterday scored a big victory after a lockdown protest saw the university management and government abolishing registration fees. Marching under the banner #VarsityLockDown, hundreds of students assembled at the institutions chanting the famous #FeesMustFall. Many others joined the students in solidarity, especially on social media where they too decried the high university tuition fees. Youth leaders of several political parties also protested in unison with the students. The protest came just months after South African students succeeded in forcing their government not to approve a hike in university fees for 2016. At the time of going to print last night, student leaders at NUST were still going through the agreement reached between the institution and the government through the Ministry of Higher Education. The ministry’s accounting officer, Alfred van Kent, said an agreement was reached to abolish registration fees while the government looks at clearing student debt. Van Kent also confirmed that the government was involved in serious negotiations with NUST to reduce tuition fees. “I found out that problem is the registration fees, which is a smaller amount but then the deposit for the tuition fees is quite a sizable amount,” he said after briefly meeting with NUST vice-chancellor Tjama Tjivikua and Higher Education Minister Itah Kandjii-Murangi. NUST students are required to pay a registration fee of N$3 500 per semester. The N$3 500 includes N$1 300 meant for registration and N$2 200 that serves as a deposit on tuition fees. The student leaders yesterday refused to meet with Tjivikua, who was accompanied by Swapo Party Youth League acting secretary and member of parliament Veikko Nekundi and the league’s spokesman, Neville Andre Itope. The students argued that Tjivikua and the NUST management were already presented with grievances drawn up by students before the summer break towards the end of last year. Tjivikua yesterday refused to comment, but confirmed that there was an agreement with the government to clear student debt. The Student Representative Council (SRC) president at NUST, Oscar Mwandingi, said this agreement would see more students enrolling at the university since registration fees would no longer be out of reach. “I can only estimate, but according to my knowledge over a thousand students dropped out of university because they could not afford to pay these fees,” he said. ‘Unaffordable’ The Namibia National Students Organisation (Nanso) blamed Tjivikua for the impasse yesterday that saw the university cancelling supplementary examinations, while its staff was asked to go home for the remainder of the working day. Nanso secretary-general Dimbulukeni Nauyoma said it was unthinkable for parents with a monthly income of N$7 000 to keep five children in college. “Is Tjama Tjivikua serious about the students?” he asked amid thunderous applause by the protesting students. A Criminal Justice student, who requested anonymity, said their demands were fair as they couldn’t be expected to fork out N$7 000 for registration every year. “Why must we pay double and students at the University of Namibia only pay N$3 000 once off?” An anonymous staff member also said Tjivikua should have sorted out the situation before he left for his holiday. “He should have known that it would have blown over from South Africa,” he said. Solidarity The protest by NUST students came just days after Unam was forced to reduce its registration fee from over N$5 000 to N$3 350. Ironically Unam student leaders were also involved in the #VarsityLockDown campaign at NUST. On Wednesday evening, student leaders from NUST, Unam, Nanso and IUM, among others, resolved that the registration of students for the first semester be put on hold until their demands are met, while the university looks at writing off student debt. They also demanded that supplementary examinations and pre-selection of students be put on hold until further notice. The student leaders demanded the university to be closed down. Early sit-in Yesterday’s protest started as early as 06:00 with a few students who guarded the main gate as well as the entrance to the library. More students and staff members arrived just after 06:30. Tjivikua and the university’s vice-chancellor for Administration and Finance, Gert Günzel, were among the staff locked out. Günzel managed to enter the premises by ordering security guards to break the padlocks put up by the protesting students. JEMIMA BEUKES