EXAM WILL PROCEED – UNESWA SENATE

MANZINI – The University of Eswatini (UNESWA) is firm on its decision that examinations will proceed.

The Senate of UNESWA reaffirmed its resolution of April 29, 2022, that examinations for the Institute of Distance Education (IDE) Certificate in Psychosocial Support, Diploma in Law, Bachelor of Laws - LLB and Institute of Post-Graduate Studies (IPGS) students would commence on May 9, 2022. In a Memorandum published by the UNESWA Registrar, Dr Salebona Simelane, it was stated that the Senate resolved that lectures for other students should be suspended for the rest of the week ending tomorrow, and that academic activities should resume on Monday, May 9, 2022, to allow for students’ completion of their continuous assessment, in consultation with departments, leading to examinations whose commencement date of Monday, May 23, 2022, should also be reaffirmed.

Petition

The resolution came just hours after students had delivered a petition to the Dean of Student Affairs (DSA), Musa Kunene, following the sexual assault of three students. The students, when submitting the petition, informed Kunene that they had come to bid him farewell and would only avail themselves for tests and assessments. They claimed that they no longer felt safe at the institution, as it was not ‘a home away from home’ as they were promised. It was gathered that the institution’s Senate had its special meeting on Tuesday, wherein it discussed the unfortunate incident that befell the trio during the night of April 29, 2022. The memorandum also stated that the sexual assault of the students was unprecedented and should be referred to the appropriate structures of the University for Corrective Action, while all the necessary support and assistance was provided to the affected students.  The Senate sympathised with the affected students and strongly condemned the barbaric act.

Allowances

“Students should be made aware that Senate had no control over student allowances and administrative matters, but appropriate structures should be made aware of the need to address them: Council on refunds for student accommodation fees and management on strengthening security at main entrances and on premises, fixing of failing street lights and other infrastructure concerns that were reported to Wardens and Maintenance Department and opening of a Warden’s Account,” reads the memorandum in part. The Senate said students should be assured that relevant structures of the university that were tasked with minimising risk would embark on a fact-finding process on what led to the sad incident which befell the three students during the night of Friday, April 29, 2022.

In reaction to this, the Vice President of the Student Representative Council (SRC), Andile Kunene, said: “As the SRC, we are yet to meet and deliberate on the next move. We’ve also asked students to share their input on our social media group on what they wish for.” Worth noting is that in the petition delivered on Tuesday, the students demanded that security at the gate should be tightened, such that entry to the institution should be monitored. This, she said, could be through, for an example, the use of student cards. They also demanded that a new professional security company should be hired as the current had failed them. It was claimed that the security company was incompetent and ignorant.

The students, through the petition, also called upon the administration of the institution to install security cameras on all residential blocks of the university. Their last demand was that the office of the warden should be provided with a separate account number, which shall be separate from UNESWA’s account. It was said that this would avert the challenge of students being without light bulbs, dysfunctional door locks while also dealing with all dormitory maintenance issues. This demand was reciprocated by various shouts and whistling by the student.

Accommodation

The students informed the DSA that in many instances the administration had failed to avail necessities to the warden’s and maintenance offices, yet they (students) paid accommodation fees which meant they should be supplied with them. The students demanded to know from the office of the DSA how the sexual assault occurred within the institution while also expressing their resolution ‘to stop all learning activities’ and demanded the immediate closure of the university. They informed the DSA that they were vacating the institution and would wait for a communiqué from the office of the Director of Transport and Maintenance, which shall assure them that everything was sorted on campus and that the university was a safe learning place to be in.

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