About 100 Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) students who want the university to reopen gathered at the intersection of Admiralty Way and University Way for a silent protest on Wednesday.
The #OpenNMMU movement has been pushing since last week for the university to reopen so students can finish their academic year.
NMMU has been shut down for three weeks following Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande’s fee hike announcement.
The #OpenNMMU students plan to protest until Friday. Due to safety concerns‚ they have decided to stay in one position instead of marching to South Campus.
- WATCH: NMMU students leave court after brief appearanceNine Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) students who were arrested on Wednesday appeared briefly in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court on Thursday morning.
The group’s convener‚ 22-year-old BTech marketing student Matthew Mackay‚ said: “Our movement provides a platform for the people who wish for the university to be reopened. One of the demands in our memorandum deals with the infringement with the right to education.
“We are not saying that fees must increase‚ we agree that fees must fall‚ but the university must stay open.”
Another #OpenNMMU movement member‚ Anesu Mahwehwe‚ 21‚ who is a third-year BSc Environmental Science student‚ said: “As much as I empathise with the #FeesMustFall movement‚ we need to shut down government not the universities.
- NMMU students protest outside courtA group of about 60 students protested outside the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court where nine Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) students were expected to appear on Thursday.
“Government does not care that we are not graduating. The result is our lives stop moving forward and theirs don’t. If we get our education we can create the change for ourselves.”
A group of #FeesMustFall students had gathered further down the road in University Way blocking the entrance to South Campus.
Police and NMMU Protection Services personnel are on the scene. - TMG Digital/The Herald
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