In the past, we have seen to which extent student protests affect all the parties involved. A significant example is what transpired in most universities during the #FeesMustFall era. South African Union of Students has been engaging with universities about the 2022 academic year.
The South African Union of Students is engaging institutions of higher learning, mainly advising them to discontinue the deployment of security forces on campus because to some degree this leads to violent protests and property destruction.
“We believe that the more institutions employ security forces they are closing a gap in a space of engagement between university students and investor management,” said South African Union of Students President Yandisa Ndzoyiya.
During the #FeesMustFall era the main goal was to stop the increases in student fees and for government funding at universities to increase.
Today, Yandisa affirms that the next uprising will be a result of the mandatory vaccinations permitted by institutions of higher learning.
He also made a proposal that institutions of higher learning should put firm policies in place to handle the unpleasant destruction to university property.
Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police, Tina Joemat-Pettersson, said student protests occur at the beginning of every academic year and the Police’s Crime Intelligence ought not to be caught off guard every year.
National Police Commissioner Khehla Sitole said there was a need for a campus security summit.
Police need to introduce community sector policing to link all the tertiary institutions.
