"Don't bluff us. Tell us when you will provide free education." Wary of unfulfilled promises in the past, students at Wits University yesterday vowed to pin the government down to making a "firm commitment" on free education before letting up and finally going back to lectures.Signs of dissent are emerging, though, as some students say they want to write their final exams.While Wits University, where the #FeesMustFall campaign started, remains shut today, most of the other universities have agreed to return to lectures after a concession by the government on Friday that no fee increments will be implemented in 2016.About R2.6-billion is what the government and universities will need to find to cover the funding gap for next year alone.Deputy director-general of university education in the Department of Higher Education Diane Parker said the exact amount would be known by the end of today as task teams worked through all the numbers and looked at possible sources of funding.Yesterday, more than 2 000 Wits students met to discuss plans to continue with protest actions. They spent hours in a closed meeting.Their spokesman, Xolani Nzuza, said students were now demanding free education and decent wages for public servants."The strike is continuing and it's expanding," he said, adding: "We will have taxi drivers joining us."Wits' former Student Representative Council president Mcebo Dlamini said: "Students are saying 'yes we've achieved the short-term goal [of no fee increment for 2016] but not the long-term goal'. What happens in 2017? Are we just transferring problems to the next generation? We're not saying the government should implement free education today or tomorrow. We have been very lenient with them. We just want a firm commitment, that's all."The students insist they will not accept any more fee increments."This government of ours makes promises. That's what they've always done and we're saying: 'Don't bluff us, just tell us when'."Some Wits students are disagreeing with leaders who have called for exam boycotts, saying they have "now lost the plot".Speaking on condition of anonymity, many students told The Times they wanted to write exams.A second-year accounting science student said: "It's confusing. We wanted a 0% fee increase and we got it. But now the leaders are saying free education. I want free education but it seems as if there's a political agenda.A second-year computer science student said: "The unsung voice is that we want to write exams.""This is no longer about academics; it's about people furthering their political careers and the reality is that these leaders don't have our interests at heart."Students said they were warned: "If you aren't with us, you're against us, a sell-out."In a televised interview yesterday, Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande said South Africa was "ready" to provide free education. He reiterated a call to the private sector to assist with additional funding."There is enough money in this country. The problem is that much of it is in the private sector," said Nzimande.But SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry acting CEO Peggy Drodskie said "not many companies can provide more funding because the private sector is really constrained at the moment".All three campuses of North West University will be shut today."We're continuing with protests. We're calling for immediate reforms," said SRC president Xavier Mabengwane.He was adamant that students were ready for exams, despite the ongoing protests.Walter Sisulu University SRC president Buhle Noah said students would return to lectures . "Our draft time table states that exams will begin on November 4," Noah said.University of Fort Hare SRC president Busisiwe Mashiqa said students would hold a mass meeting to discuss a way forward."We have a memorandum that lists a number of demands that the university still needs to meet, our meeting will pave a way forward," Mashiqa said.At the University of Cape Town, exams have been indefinitely postponed.Additional reporting by Zwanga Mukhuthu, Aarti J Narsee and Leoni Wagner..