Cape Town - Thousands of university students from across the Western Cape are expected to march to the gates of Parliament on Wednesday to demand an answer to their call for free tertiary education.
The march is set to coincide with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan’s medium-term budget speech in Parliament.
The Democratic Alliance has also been granted permission to march.
A number of students from UCT, the University of the Western Cape (UWC), Stellenbosch University (SU) and Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) have been in support of the #FeesMustFall movement.
CPUT’s Fees Must Fall spokesman Lukhanyo Vangqa said: “The purpose of the march is to highlight the plight of students, to legislature, who are unable to access higher education because they are poor and black.”
The march is expected to start at 10am and students will be meeting at the CPUT Cape Town campus.
Phakamani Ntentema from the University of Cape Town’s Progressive SRC Candidate Movement said since last year students had been trying to get the government to respond to their call, with no success.
“We want to put pressure directly to government’s cabinet ministers and there is no better way to get them to respond then when they are in Parliament,” said Ntentema.
Ntentema said students were calling on Gordhan to redirect government funds towards securing free higher education for all.
UCT Vice-Chancellor Dr Max Price has also issued an invitation to staff members to show solidarity with the protesting students and staff members by picketng outside Parliament on Wednesday or joining the students’ march.
“Members of the UCT executive will participate in the UCT Employees Union picket. We invite staff and students to show their support for the cause of greater state funding for higher education and more affordable education for all by participating in one or other of the protests,” Price said.
The #FeesMustFall movement started last year. When then finance minister Nhlanhla Nene was delivering his budget, students marched to Parliament, bursting through the gates. Police fired stun grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets at the students. Several students were arrested and many others injured.
Simone Cupido from SU’s #FeesMustFall movement said they were expecting the same treatment this year.
“Whenever government talks about student protests they refer to it in terms of violence and not the core issue, which is free education.
“After going through all the police brutality we endured, we are prepared for anything that may come, whichever form of violence they are willing to throw,” said Cupido.
UWC’s #FeesMustFall spokesman Monde Nonabe said students had mobilised and had asked the department of education to release pupils to support the protest.
“Everyone who is a student will be in town tomorrow. We will use all forms of transport to get here and we will demand our call be heeded. We are expecting the masses,” said Nonabe.
Over the past few weeks, several cars have been set alight on CPUT and UCT campuses. It is alleged the fires were part of student protests.
The Short Courses Centre at the Cape Town campus was badly damaged by fire. At the Bellville Campus, the Control Centre near the entrance gates is in a similar condition. Three security staff suffered lacerations and smoke inhalation during this attack.
Cape Argus