Deputy Speaker, I move without notice on behalf of Cope:
That the House -
(1) notes that many students who are eligible for financial assistance do not have the financial support to make the upfront payment demanded by Wits University; (2) further notes that for these students, who are desperate to enrol at university, the window for meeting the registration requirements will close and the university's system will remove their names and thus shatter their dreams;
(3) recognises that many of these students worked very hard at school under very trying and difficult circumstances to attain the marks necessary to meet the entrance requirements at Wits University;
(4) further recognises that the advent of democracy in 1994 gave real hope to formerly disadvantaged communities that henceforth all learners who worked hard and achieved matriculation exemptions could entertain real hopes of going to university and achieving their ambitions in spite of personal financial constraints;
(5) acknowledges that Wits University has to secure its own financial situation in order for the university to be financially sustainable and for it to remain an institution of excellence;
(6) further acknowledges that the National Student Financial Aid Scheme has been of considerable benefit to thousands of university students, although its administration has not always been as sound as students and society expected;
(7) believes that students who qualify for NSFAS should be supported in some way or other to make the initial payment to have their names entered into the system;
(8) further believes that the Minister of Higher Education should reach out to social partners to create a revolving fund that can provide bridging finance for students to meet their initial registration obligations; and
(9) applauds the Student Representative Council at Wits University for trying to raise R1 million to help their fellow students pay their registration fees.
Agreed to.