- TUT students could be joining student protest action at the end of their academic calendar, in a week's time.
- The university SRC declined to join the nationwide protests as it would be "unfair" to students completing the academic year.
- However, the SRC leadership is considering a march to demand money be made available to help alleviate student debt.
The Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) student representative council (SRC) has spoken out against the police's alleged use of rubber bullets during student protests.
SRC president-general Mike Mothiba has condemned "ongoing police violence", calling on Police Minster Bheki Cele and President Cyril Ramaphosa to ban "the use of rubber bullets on innocent young people whose only crime was to dare dream".
Nationwide protests started at higher learning institutions on Monday, over fees and access to registration.
However, the SRC at TUT decided not to join - instead it encouraged students to focus on studying so that the 2020 academic year could be concluded.
LIST | Student protests: Here are students' demands
In a communiqué on Monday morning, the SRC said it supported the call for a shutdown due to funding problems, but it would be "unfair" to students from the institution to join the protests while they were busy finishing their 2020 academic year.
However, TUT students "can't wait to join the ongoing mass action" in a week's time, once the 2020 academic calendar had ended, said Mothiba.
"The student debt keeps increasing yearly and more students denied access to universities while many others have completed their studies with nothing to show as universities have kept their qualification," Mothiba said.
READ | University fees protests: Students block roads near UJ in early morning demonstration
"The cost of corruption is so high that R14 billion of student debt is nothing but a mere drop in the ocean if our leaders are to be serious about the ongoing crisis."
Mothiba added that TUT student leaders were considering a march to Finance Minister Tito Mboweni's office to demand that government make money available to resolve the challenge of student debt.
