Sasco calls for all varsities to shutdown
Student body SASCO has called on students across the country to embark on mass action against university fee hikes.
The organisation says its protests will continue until students' demands are met.
Students yesterday rejected a 6% cap on fee increases saying they do not want to see any hikes.
A protest began last week when Wits students demonstrated over the proposed 10,5% fee hike for 2016.
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande yesterday announced that vice chancellors had agreed to cap their fee increases for next year at 6%.
At least one KZN institution says it is not considering entering the protest action.
The Durban University of Technology SRC Sandile Nene has told Newswatch that talks with management over fees are underway and seem promising.
''It will be dependant on the resolution taken after negotiations because we still have to report back to students and inform them of what's been proposed and discuss with them if we should reject or accept but they decide what happens.
''We do not want to find ourselves in a predicament where we are saying to students we've accepted this, no, we cannot accept anything without consulting the students first,'' he said.
Meanwhile, tensions ran high at UFS last night when the SRC met with management over the proposed increases for 2016.
Hundreds of students tried to barge in on the meeting at the university's main building. UFS SRC president Lindokuhle Ntuli says they don't want the situation to get out of hand.
"What the university is trying to do is to cut down the costs and see what they can cut down to get to the 0% increment. So our position as the SRC now is to support the students.
"I think it will also add pressure on the university and government to make a decision that is in the best interests of the students," he said.
(File photo)