21/08/2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SASCO UFH ALICE CAMPUS WELCOMES COUNCIL RESPONSE TO STUDENT GRIEVANCES AND DEMANDS ACCOUNTABILITY
21 August 2026
The South African Students Congress (SASCO), University of Fort Hare Alice Campus, welcomes the latest communiqué issued by the University Council, particularly its acknowledgement of legitimate student grievances concerning poor residence conditions, delayed maintenance, infrastructure challenges, security concerns and the broader conditions under which students live and learn.
Council’s acknowledgement confirms what students have consistently maintained: the recent unrest did not emerge in a vacuum. It was preceded by longstanding and unresolved grievances. Students should never have to protest before basic living conditions receive the attention they deserve.
SASCO welcomes the establishment of the Council Committee on Accommodation and Student Living, including provision for student representation. Student voices must remain central to decisions concerning accommodation, welfare and campus life. We further commend residence committees that continue to represent students and demand safe, dignified accommodation. These structures must remain accountable to students and independent in raising their concerns.
We particularly welcome Council’s demand for a progress report identifying the causes of delays in infrastructure, maintenance and security, where responsibility lies, and what consequence-management measures have been taken. We therefore expect the Acting Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Dr Nthabiseng Taole-Mjimba, to account for these matters before Council.
Accountability must be consistent. Where officials have failed to fulfil their responsibilities or have ignored legitimate student grievances, appropriate consequence management must follow. Students cannot continuously face disciplinary action while institutional failures go without accountability.
SASCO further calls for a fundamental change in how student grievances are handled. Students must not be forced to mobilise before their concerns are taken seriously. Maintenance failures, poor residence conditions and infrastructure challenges must be addressed through ordinary institutional processes before they become sources of unrest. Trust will not be restored through statements alone, but through action, accountability and delivery.
SASCO also welcomes Council’s decision not to immediately adopt the Student Governance Constitution. The SGC directly affects student democracy and representation and must therefore undergo meaningful consultation before final adoption. Students must have a genuine opportunity to review the document, raise concerns and propose amendments.
Nothing about students must be decided without the meaningful participation of students.
SASCO further expresses its appreciation to all students and members of the University community who stood in solidarity with those arrested during the recent unrest and worked towards securing their release. Their arrests must not erase the legitimate grievances that brought students onto the streets. The institution must also confront the conditions that made such mobilisation necessary.
Safe, dignified and humane accommodation is not an unreasonable demand. Students deserve environments in which they can study, rest and succeed without constantly fighting for basic necessities.
We therefore call upon the Acting Vice-Chancellor and Council to ensure that the commitments made translate into tangible action, that responsible officials are held accountable, and that the Council Committee on Accommodation and Student Living becomes a meaningful mechanism for resolving student grievances.
SASCO remains committed to defending the interests, dignity and democratic rights of students at the University of Fort Hare. We will continue to engage where engagement advances student interests and mobilise where students are ignored.
The student voice must not only be heard during moments of crisis; it must be heard whenever decisions affecting students are made.
Elethu Makeleni
Branch Secretary
Lwazi Ntusana
Branch Chairperson
SASCO UFH
Alice Campus
South African Students Congress❤️💚💛🖤
