CAPE TOWN - The yearly registration woes, especially for students with outstanding fee debts, has once again unfolded and seems far from over as no sustainable and effective measures have been introduced.
Just two days after UCT kicked off the start of the academic year, the academic programme was disrupted on Wednesday by protesting students led by the Students’ Representative Council (SRC).
As entrances to campuses were barricaded and many students were prevented from accessing classes and other facilities, the shuttle service also had to be temporarily suspended.
At centre of the demonstrations is the registration exclusion of students who have outstanding debt, and those whose registration is pending without access to academic materials.
SRC acting president Siyabulela Plaatjie said they had met with management prior to the protest, and they had made a commitment that all students would be able to assess lecture materials pending their registration issues, but that was not the case.
#UCTProtest SRC acting president Siyabulela Plaatjie says they will continue to disrupt classes until management responds to their grievances.@CapeTimesSA https://t.co/F4ZchrtisB pic.twitter.com/pwxNM2L3JY
— Okuhle Hlati (@okuhle_hlati) February 16, 2022
“Our tabled proposal is for the academic year to be halted until all students are registered and council has resolved on fee blocks.
“There are hundreds of students who do not have fee blocks, but cannot register due to the administrative failures of the university.
“What have they done to be left behind by three academic days?
“Will the lecture material be repeated? Will they be given time to catch up and be on the same track as their peers?
“Considering that we sat in a meeting where it felt like we were all prioritising the students, it shocks us that the university insisted on beginning an academic year they were not ready for,” said Plaatjie.
A master’s student, Jennie, 21, said she registered last month and paid the admission fee, but was struggling to access all resources due to pending registration.
“I’m also on my mothers medical aid due to a chronic disease and they need proof of registration in order to keep me on the medical aid. I’m anxious that if I don’t get the form by month's end I will be cut off and won't get access to my chronic medication. This will affect my coursework also,” she said.
Another student said when she arrived at the campus at 8:30am she was blocked by traffic officers from entering Upper Campus.
“Many students spent money on transport to get to campus, it’s not cheap. They could’ve let us know before (yesterday), but I was told that the SRC has been blocked from sending emails to students.”
UCT’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng called on the SRC to refrain from blocking access to campus and interrupting services with immediate effect.
She said they have been in continual communication and that the delays in completing registration have been caused by a number of factors, including the unprecedented numbers of students seeking personal curriculum advice.
“We have asked each faculty to ensure that access to Vula is opened to all students, whether or not their registration is complete, so that they are not disadvantaged.
“As of today a total of 512 student registrations were still being processed. Of these, 122 were new submissions, so delayed registration cases still outstanding amounted to 441,” said Phakeng.
She said the threshold for the fee block for students with outstanding debt had been raised from R1000 to R10 000 and the grace period for appeals against exclusion for fee debt extended to March 31.
Cape Times