Staff Reporter.
Photo Credit: Raymond Preston.
One person has died after police fired rubber bullets at Wits University’s protesting students at the Braamfontein campus.
Students have threatened to continue their protest on Wednesday over the financial exclusion by NSFAS.
On Tuesday, traffic was badly affected on Empire Road in Johannesburg due to a protest by students.
Wits University says that if it continues to accept students who have historical debt, the institution will become financially unsustainable.
The university is already owed R1 billion in outstanding fees accumulated over the past seven years.
Wits University added that it has made available R20 million for students who are facing financial hardship and R100 million has been allocated to financial aid through bursaries and scholarships.
Wits University spokesperson, Shirona Patel, says the so-called missing middle remains a challenge.
“These are students who have accumulated debt because they cannot pay and they do not quality for NSFAS. That accumulated debt over the years. If we continue to accept students with this historical debt it means that the university will become financially unsustainable.”
“We do not want to be bailed out by government. We want to be a financially sustainable organisation. Yes, we want to keep the doors open for as many people as possible but we do have limited resources. What this means is call on the private sector and public sector to support those students in the missing middle,” added Patel.
There’s been no confirmation of arrests from the clashes that broke out Wednesday morning.