Poly students get support

The Polytechnic says it is open to discussion with students about their grievances.

About 300 students protested on Monday and presented a petition to the Rector in the the presence of the Minister of Education in which their grievances were highlighted. The institution was given until this afternoon to respond.”I told them (students) that we are open to discussion.We will agree on when this will happen tomorrow (today),” the Rector of Polytechnic, Dr Tjama Tjivikua, told The Namibian late yesterday.He said he had spoken to the students since their march on Monday, and would meet with them soon to discuss a way forward.The change of heartcomes after Tjivikua drew flak when he warned students against staging more protests.He was quoted as saying that the Polytechnic management was prepared to mete out sanctions against students making themselves guilty of misconduct.The students yesterday received support from the Namibia National Students’ Organisation (Nanso).Nanso condemned what it called the autocratic management style at the Polytechnic, and criticised the institution’s purported emphasis on financial organisation over “human capital needs”.”We have witnessed over a number of years how the management of the Polytechnic has been engaging in undemocratic practices when it comes to resolving student concerns,” Nanso claimed in a press release.”Managers of this institution should be reminded that theirs is to ensure that Namibia becomes adequately skilled as opposed to holding students at ransom over unpaid fees.”Fees which are beyond what any poor Namibian can afford, further perpetuating the gap between the well off and the have-nots.The cost of higher education is increasing and it is affecting the smooth access of higher education,” it said.The institution was given until this afternoon to respond.”I told them (students) that we are open to discussion.We will agree on when this will happen tomorrow (today),” the Rector of Polytechnic, Dr Tjama Tjivikua, told The Namibian late yesterday.He said he had spoken to the students since their march on Monday, and would meet with them soon to discuss a way forward.The change of heartcomes after Tjivikua drew flak when he warned students against staging more protests.He was quoted as saying that the Polytechnic management was prepared to mete out sanctions against students making themselves guilty of misconduct.The students yesterday received support from the Namibia National Students’ Organisation (Nanso).Nanso condemned what it called the autocratic management style at the Polytechnic, and criticised the institution’s purported emphasis on financial organisation over “human capital needs”.”We have witnessed over a number of years how the management of the Polytechnic has been engaging in undemocratic practices when it comes to resolving student concerns,” Nanso claimed in a press release.”Managers of this institution should be reminded that theirs is to ensure that Namibia becomes adequately skilled as opposed to holding students at ransom over unpaid fees.”Fees which are beyond what any poor Namibian can afford, further perpetuating the gap between the well off and the have-nots.The cost of higher education is increasing and it is affecting the smooth access of higher education,” it said.