On Wednesday, the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) released a statement condemning acts of violence against their officials and disruptions at campuses. NSFAS officials are being deployed to campuses around the country to onboard students on to the new NSFAS payment system.
NSFAS launched the NSFAS bank account last year with it being piloted at TVET Colleges with university students using the system for the first time in June of this year.
However, the introduction of the NSFAS bank account has not been without it's challenges. Now, NSFAS has said that violence is being directed towards their officials.
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is deeply concerned about the alarming incidents of violence and the persistent incitement of violent directed towards the officials who have been deployed to various institutions in facilitating the transition of NSFAS beneficiaries to the direct payment solution.
NSFAS has said that these acts are "completely unacceptable" and that they'll ensure that those responsible are held accountable, with an SRC president allegedly being one of those "inciting students to commit violent and criminal acts".
The scheme is now working with law enforcement agencies and relevant authorities as they are determined to "bring justice and ensure that they fce the full might of the law".
"NSFAS is actively engaging with stakeholders, including institutions and student representative bodies, to find long-term solutions to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future."
Collaborative efforts are being made to promote a culture of respect, constructive dialogue and peaceful resolution of any issues or grievances that may arise during the implementation of new initiatives.
Students Are Struggling To Pay NSFAS Bank Account Fees
Since the introduction of the direct payment system, students have complained about exorbitant bank charges and the inability to access their allowances.
South African Union of Students (SAUS) Spokesperson, Asive Dlanjwa, said the union agreed that students will not be charged more than a R12 admin fee, but students are now allegedly being charged up to R174.
Its important to note that the fees are being charged by the service providers and not NSFAS. However, some have questioned why students are being forced to pay these fees instead of NSFAS.
Other Challenges With NSFAS Bank Accounts
Bank charges is only one of the many challenges now being brought to light about NSFAS' new payment system. System challenges include not being user-friendly and not easily accessible for students which presented challenges with onboarding.
The academic programme at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) has already been disrupted as a result of challenges with the direct allowance payment system.
Students are concerned about the introduction of the direct allowance system during an ongoing academic project which affects students returning from recess and those preparing for second semesters.
TUT SRC President, Keamogetswe Masike, says they will continue protesting until the challenges are resolved.
