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EFF at heart of students protests: Nzimande

Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande. Picture Credit: Gallo Images
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande. Picture Credit: Gallo Images

Minister of Higher Education Blade Nzimande has charged that the Economic Freedom Fighters are among the groups that are leading violent student protests across the country.

Speaking to ENCA after the medium-term budget policy statement‚ Nzimande said he was disappointed by the violent sights outside Parliament on Wednesday afternoon.

“It is an unpleasant sight. We are on the same side as students on the issue of free higher education. For us it is free higher education for the poor with assistance to those who may not be in the category of poor but still cannot be able to afford. Measures announced by the minister of finance show very decisive commitment by government to reach the goal of being able to provide financial assistance to those who need it‚” he said.

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan announced an additional R9-billion for higher education to further help students that benefit from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme.

 This increase makes Nzimande’s department among the highest recipients‚ having received an 18% annual increase.

 “We might be having disturbances here and there but the system is functional. Increasingly‚ it is a smaller minority that seems not to be determined to let off and say these things are being addressed‚ let us give them time.

“What concerns me is that what started as a legitimate struggle has been hijacked by elements which seem to be having other perverse political agendas. There a whole lot of groupings of people. Some of them are political parties. You see their T-shirts all the time‚ who are not interested in seeing the year out…[EFF] they are very central in some of these disturbances which is very unfortunate‚” Nzimande replied to a question whether it was the EFF that was causing the trouble.

 

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