FREE EDUCATION
Monwabisi Ncayiyana SASCO regional Secretary Writes
The South African Students Congress (SASCO) has decided to embark on mass demonstration in all nine provinces of South Africa calling for free, compulsory and quality education, this has been long overdue since the ruling party has finally resolved consciously in 2007 in Polokwane Conference that education should be free in South Africa until to the first degree.
The South African Students Congress (SASCO) resolved on free, compulsory and quality education because majority of youth in South Africa are unable to study due to financial reasons, on other side the As South African Students Congress (SASCO) we seek to Transform higher education and Society in general, we belief that education is a primary tool in the liberation of our Country and its people from the scourge of poverty and underdevelopment.
In this regard it becomes clear that if you educate at least one child in a family you have broken the cycle of poverty not only in that particular family but to the community as a whole. Our understanding should lies along the fact that educating the youth is the investment for the future of South Africa however we mustn’t be surprised when some of our own students or people continue to question the possibility of free education.
Others will not only question the possibility of free education but they will go as far as disrupting or de campaign against this call only because there is a false impression imprinted on the minds of other people that the call for free, compulsory and quality education is a dream from SASCO.
We must not be surprised by those people simple because of various reasons but fundamentally class dichotomy is core reason behind those bunches of people, however we need to understand and clarify the confused elite not only because they do not understand this call but because either they are part of middle class whom do not understand the existence of poor people, It might be obvious issue to upper class why they don’t understand this call.
Universities such as Rhodes University, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and University of Stellenbosch continue to ridicule black students by excluding poor students, we must not only condemn this but we continues to mobiles Students against any backward mentality which is clearly institutionalised and reflective of the racist mentality that is still rife in management of universities epically former whites University.
We have agreed in principle that education is a right not a privilege; in this regard Education needs to be de-commodified as soon as possible.
Whereas the education in South Africa still determined by the Financial Arrogance of a particular family or individual we must be clear that we are not free in this democracy and we must continue to show that we are determined to continue with our demand for free, compulsory quality public education in this academic year, infect we must continue with mass action, mobilization of our students and we go as far as mobilizing the community to ensure that this ideal demand becomes a reality.
We must salute the provincial executive committees for their crucial role in ensuring that this becomes a success.
Aluta
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The demonstrations on Free Education have indeed sent signalled to the capitalist who are derailing the process of the drastic (not gradual) introduction of free education. The Eastern Cape must be given credit for organising one of the best marches last Friday. We need the government to tell us now as to how they will implement free education next year. And the comrade Monwabisi has cached the mice by the tail here, that educating the nation is indeed developing it and actually eliminating many social ills that comes as a result of its lack. It is even important that we locate our call for Free Education within the context of the struggle for Socialism, as free education in capitalism would be hallow as it will be undermined by capital.
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