Fees Commisison appeals for composure following Nzimande’s announcement

The Commission of Inquiry into Higher Education and Training has appealed for composure from all stakeholders as it finalises proposals for a long-term funding model for higher education and training.

The commission made this comment following the announcement by the Department of Higher Education & Training regarding the tuition fee adjustments for 2017.

Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande had on Monday announced that the duty of determining university fees rested with the universities and not with him‚ but recommended that increases be capped at 8% and the process be transparent‚ reasonable and linked to inflation.

“We are further appreciative of the implications the announcement‚ and the reactions it has elicited‚ will have on the continuing work of the commission‚” commission spokesman Musa Ndwandwe said in a statement.

“It has become‚ therefore‚ even more critical that all roleplayers in the higher education and training sector afford the commission the necessary space and time to complete its work.”

Ndwandwe said the second phase of the public hearings‚ with a focus on post-school education and training‚ begins in Pretoria on September 29.

“A preliminary report with workable recommendations will be submitted to the president in November 2016 with the final submission in June 2017‚” Ndwandwe said.

• Wits students march to ‘conscientise students’ still in class after fees announcementStudents at the University of the Witwatersrand plan to storm campus and pull students out of class in an attempt to shut the institution down. 

Earlier this month‚ the commission cancelled scheduled public hearings in Bloemfontein and Kimberley following the disruption of its hearings in East London and Cape Town.

A group of students intimidated the vice-chancellors of the University of Fort Hare Mvuyo Tom and University of Cape Town Dr Max Price‚ and hurled racist insults at the commission’s chairman‚ Judge Jonathan Heher.

President Jacob Zuma appointed the commission in January following widespread protests by university students last year against the high costs of university fees.

The commission will inquire into and make recommendations on the feasibility of a fee-free higher education and training in South Africa.