Chairperson, firstly, I would like to congratulate the EFF students' command on their third successive national elective conference which took place in Bloemfontein two weeks ago. I have opened with this because of the role the EFF and the students' command has played in the struggle for free education. Only a few months after the students' command was launched in 2015, the Fees Must Fall movement began. The material conditions of students on the ground is the motive force for the EFF's presence at
institutions of higher learning, and why the EFF message continues to resonate amongst young people.
Minister, our entire higher education system is in a mess. Education cannot be treated like a commodity, but currently access to the higher education system in this country is determined by whether you can pay or not. We maintain that education is still not free despite all the promises that have been made. This is the reality on the ground amongst students. They are not seeing this free education, they are not experiencing this free education. So it does not exist.
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme of South Africa, NSFAS, Minister, is broken. Everyday poor black students go to bed hungry because they don't get their NSFAS food allowance on time. Students are squatting, and are forced to share learning material. According to your department's own statistics there are 25 000 students in this country who have not received there NSFAS money. Your department has failed to deliver what it has promised. Your department's failures in relations to NSFAS is reflected in the high number of drop-outs at universities and the Technical and Vocational Education and Training, TVET, colleges.
At institutions of higher learning we are also seeing an accommodation crisis that is leaving thousands of students homeless. In 2018, there were over one million students at universities, but at the same time there were only 130 000 beds available. That means our universities cannot even accommodate 15% of the student population. Because of this massive accommodation shortfall, students are going homeless and are forced to squat, leaving them in constant fear of having no place to sleep instead of concentrating what is in the next exam. The lack of accommodation is dangerous for female students, because like in the rest of our society female students live under constant threat from the males they study and live with.
Institutions of higher learning must improve their security. Too many young women are being raped and murdered on our campuses. That is why in our election manifesto we call for the establishment of in-sourced campus security at each TVET colleges and university with a specialised sexual crimes unit. All campuses must also have counsellors, psychologists and nurses available for students to consult free of charge. We cannot continue to ignore the mental health of young people in our society.
Minister, the TVET colleges have been ignored by you for too long. And the best example of this once again is the accommodation crisis. We have 800 O00 students at TVET colleges but there are only 14 000 beds available. And even where there is accommodation, like at TVET colleges in Giyani, it cannot be used because the buildings are collapsing and are not being repaired and maintained. This failure by your department to provide the basics is not only due to incompetence, but it is a product of corruption in the TVET system. Money that is meant for students fees, for books, for accommodation and for general maintenance of the campuses is being stolen. Your department must act against these criminal administrators.
Xitsonga:
Tanihi vandla ra EFF a hi pfumelelani na yona bajete leyi. Ndza khensa