PRETORIA – The Student Representative Council (SRC) at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) is calling on the Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande to urgently address issues surrounding National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding.
The SRC was on Thursday leading a march through the streets of Pretoria central demonstrating against the cheme’s new direct payment method.
In June, the financial aid scheme announced that beneficiaries would receive allowances through the NSFAS bank account.
However, the students said they had been facing difficulties with accessing their money due to technical glitches in the scheme’s new payment method.
WATCH: TUT students take to the streets over Nsfas payment system
The demonstrating students told Eyewitness News that it was careless of the financial aid scheme to rollout a system that constantly had technical issues.
TUT SRC president Keamogetswe Masike urged Nzimande to do away with the NSFAS bank account.
“Students are currently home and have not received their allowances. Today [Thursday], it is reported that the banking app is not even working. Students have not received their allowances up until today, these are students who depend on this money to survive.”
He said most students prefer the traditional payment method that pays allowances to the personal bank accounts of beneficiaries.
Led by the institution’s SRC, the students continue to fill up the streets of the capital city. pic.twitter.com/kKM4Ri3gVz
‘ EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) August 3, 2023