Editorial Team · Editorial Team hile having one of those casual conversations, though the interpretation of casual can never lean too much of the side of peer familiarity, with one

Editorial Team

hile having one of those casual conversations, though the interpretation of casual can never lean too much of the side of peer familiarity, with one of the senior members of the Department, I ask her what aspects of her job she finds fulfilling. She replies (paraphrased); “It is rather ridiculous that the Eastern Cape, in all the country’s social, economic and development measures, is always at the bottom of the pile when here we are. The human capital from the Eastern Cape, in multitudes, dispersed all around the country and very few flinch when reading the statistics…year after year. So, here I am; using the resources that I have to change what I don’t like.” This in short, quite literally stole my heart. One of the nagging reservations that I have though about the idea of development (of the mind, the body and all the elements that make up the human form) is: will it bring about change that is meaningful? While it is financial remuneration that compensates one for the effort of “making a living” everyday, what is the purpose of ensuring that we live everyday? Why is it that we must insist on making a living everyday or ensuring that we will be adequately equipped to live and survive in the world?

As the Mandela generation is absorbed into the system of higher education, burdened with the most highest of expectations – to manifest freedom in their being, these are some of the questions that we have to confront in our long and interesting journey of becoming more enlightened; through education, our experiences and through those conversations.

We hope that the news reported on every month about the university and the communities which surround it will inspire some curiosity to find out about world and the people who surround us; how they influence and impact our lives, and how we are a part of our societies, can influence and impact them and perhaps change them for the better.

Message from the Editor, Zokwanda Rasmeni

Editor in ChiefZ i n t l e F i l t a n e

Content ManagerK h o t s o M o a b i

EditorZ o k w a n d a R a s m e n i

WritersQ u i n t e r O y a n g oA n e l e P a y i L u t h o M a b a n d l aS i p h o k a z i M a n z i

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One of the reasons I love my job is this

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GE University closes because of strike........................................................3

Fake university uses UFH name to scam desperate students.............5

The deal with residence refurbishments................................................6

Orientation...............................................................................................7

Entertainment Movies Books........................................................10

Interim SRC receives mixed feelings from students...............................9

UFH Sport.............................................................................................12

Sport UFH Cricket star..........................................................................11

_______________________________________________________Description Page

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On our website

Daily Dispatch dialogues Vice Chancellor on Conducive institutional atmosphere

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So what was the strike all about? In what started off as a demonstration by students to issue a memorandum of demands to the management of the university turned into a violent strike that permeated the Alice community and resulted in the extensive damage of university property, the arrest of students by local authorities and the injury of students who had to be taken to nearby hospitals.

On the 06th of February, some UFH students peacefully convened in front of the Administration building where Bulali Rawana, SRC President issued a memorandum of demands to a representative of the university management. Management was requested to offer a response addressing the tabulated demands of the memorandum the following day. The demands were as follows: - Reverse the Private Public Partnership with Equicent Construction Company to manage the refurbishing of residences. - The removal of the Biometric Security system, a feature installed in residences to manage access control and ensure the security of the students; - A reduction in residence fees, - Changing the residence allocation system adopted in 2013; the appointment of the secretary of the residence manager to act as the residence coordinator of the university; - Rejection of the introduction of double bunk beds in residences; - Automatic supplementary examinations for students left with one module before graduation;- Re-accept students who have been academically excluded by the university with only 3 modules left before graduation; - Allow to students to change from one degree programme to another; - Terminate the contracts of some staff members of the university.

The violence of the strike escalated on the 07th of February when a number of students barricaded the university entrance by burning material on site, preventing staff members from entering university premises. The most violent peak of the strike however occurred on the 11th of February after the striking students had been issued with a court interdict by the Bhisho High Court which declared the strike unlawful. This upsurge of violence prompted intervention by local authorities, which resulted in a violent unfolding of events in the Alice campus throughout the day.

A verbal response to the demands was issued on the 07th of February by Vice Chancellor, Dr Mvuyo Tom, and further communication was sent through the UFH Internal e-mail services elaborating on the VC’s responses to the memorandum. The Vice Chancellor addressed the demands of the memorandum in 4 salient points:

picture by Michael Pinyana

The class of 2012 at the university of Fort Hare is about to graduate in May and entering the labour market at the worst time for many years; when unemployment is rising resulting in the increase of competition for jobs. Many people think of going to universities as a simply way to advance their education or to earn a degree in order to make them more marketable to employers, but the real task begins after graduating and being rendered jobless with a degree at hand. In addition to acquiring the strong academic and technical knowledge required for many roles in the work place, graduates and postgraduates also need the employability skills and positive attitude that employers value in every new recruit.

University of Fort Hare amongst other Universities all over the world recognize that the key to well-rounded academic experience is helping a student develop both hard skills that can be directly applied to a job and a variety of soft skills and life experiences that would allow them to adapt to a dramatically changing work place. Universities are also bolstering academic and student support services, such as career centres and they continue to develop robust career centres that place the importance of students and alumni’s future at the forefront of their services. The question still begs however; is the university of Fort Hare doing enough to ensure that its students acquire the competitive edge over other graduates; and are the students of the university equipping themselves enough to be suitable job candidates in such a fierce environment? [Quinter Oyango]

A mock university, which had been illegally posing as Fort Hare College and accepting applications from students under the guise of being affiliated with the university, was tracked down by university management.

Failure to meet university entrance requirements, rejections by universities and the failure to apply to a university until too late meant that a number of high school leaving students were found wanting for a place to study further in 2013. The result of this desperation prompted the burgeoning of scams that feed off the dire need of many students to acquire an education, like the Fort Hare College which had been advertised as an institution that would afford students the opportunity to receive this education.

Stakeholder Relations Manager, Mr Lizo Phiti, whose responsibility among many is to ensure that the reputation of the university is amicably maintained trailed the scam to ensure that no further people were victimised. Local authorities were informed, after which the College seized to exist. Unfortunately, the university could not ascertain how many people were taken advantage of by the scam, or how much money was generated from it. Phiti commented; “it is unfortunate that scams of this nature target the most vulnerable in our society”. [Zokwanda Rasmeni]

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1. Automatic supplementary examinations The university has allowed for the automatic writing of supplementary examinations when students have obtained a 45% - 49% mark in their examination for some years, as is detailed in the Rules and Regulations of the university [Rule G.6.3.2].

2. Academic Exclusion (the reacceptance of students who have been academically excluded) The Faculties were still addressing appeals made by students, who would be informed of the outcomes of their appeals according to the dates: Science and Agriculture : Friday 08 February Law : Friday 08 February Management and Commerce : Tuesday 12 February Social Science and Humanities : Wednesday 13 February Education : Monday 11 February

3. Degree Change The university also makes provision for students to changedegrees and/or Faculties on condition that certain requirements are met. [Rule G.3.15.4]

4. Student Accommodation

• CostsAccording to the VC, the students’ accommodation costs are not subsidised by government, therefore all costs of operating residences are paid by the students living in the residences, bearing in mind that 70% of students are covered by some form of financial aid.

According to the VC, the students’ accommodation costs are not subsidised by government, therefore all costs of operating residences are paid by the students living in the residences. The renovated residences are having a fee-redetermination rather than a normal increase. The standard fee for a double room will be R15854 per annum per student. The fee for a single room will be R19156 per year, however there are not many of these on the Alice Campus. More than 70% of our students are covered by one form or another of financial aid. In the case where more students are placed in a double room for example the fee will be R10570 per student for three sharing and R7927 per student for four sharing. This was a temporary measure that we wanted to introduce whilstawaiting the building of additional accommodation for our students. The students have however refused the offer and we shall not be pursued further.

So what was the strike all about? In what started off as a demonstration by students to issue a memorandum of demands to the management of the university turned into a violent strike that permeated the Alice community and resulted in the extensive damage of university property, the arrest of students by local authorities and the injury of students who had to be taken to nearby hospitals.

On the 06th of February, some UFH students peacefully convened in front of the Administration building where Bulali Rawana, SRC President issued a memorandum of demands to a representative of the university management. Management was requested to offer a response addressing the tabulated demands of the memorandum the following day. The demands were as follows: - Reverse the Private Public Partnership with Equicent Construction Company to manage the refurbishing of residences. - The removal of the Biometric Security system, a feature installed in residences to manage access control and ensure the security of the students; - A reduction in residence fees, - Changing the residence allocation system adopted in 2013; the appointment of the secretary of the residence manager to act as the residence coordinator of the university; - Rejection of the introduction of double bunk beds in residences; - Automatic supplementary examinations for students left with one module before graduation;- Re-accept students who have been academically excluded by the university with only 3 modules left before graduation; - Allow to students to change from one degree programme to another; - Terminate the contracts of some staff members of the university.

The violence of the strike escalated on the 07th of February when a number of students barricaded the university entrance by burning material on site, preventing staff members from entering university premises. The most violent peak of the strike however occurred on the 11th of February after the striking students had been issued with a court interdict by the Bhisho High Court which declared the strike unlawful. This upsurge of violence prompted intervention by local authorities, which resulted in a violent unfolding of events in the Alice campus throughout the day.

A verbal response to the demands was issued on the 07th of February by Vice Chancellor, Dr Mvuyo Tom, and further communication was sent through the UFH Internal e-mail services elaborating on the VC’s responses to the memorandum. The Vice Chancellor addressed the demands of the memorandum in 4 salient points:






CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

Is your university preparing you for work






Fake college uses Fort Hare’ name to scam desperate students

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Residence refurbishments process The infrastructural challenges facing the Alice residences has been a topical issue for a long time in the university. The consequence of this dissatisfaction by students was the appointment a steering committee comprising students, Student Affairs, the Properties and Services centre and Equiscent Construction Co. to manage the development and refurbishment of the residences, which, according to refurbishment plan devised by Equicent, will be carried out in 4 Phases.The first phase of the development process, which included the construction of two new residence blocks accommodating 160 students each commenced with the construction one of the new residences, which is scheduled for completion at the end of April. Phase 2 of the developments comprised the refurbishment of 7 student blocks: ZK Matthews, ZK Matthews 2 Jabavu, Jolobe 1, Jolobe 2, Tiyo Soga and Molefe, which began in February. The third phase of the process will comprise the refurbishment of priority student blocks: Ezola 1, Ezola 2 and Ezola 3. And the fourth and final phase will conclude by refurbishing the remaining residences as prioritised by the university. [Zokwanda Rasmeni]

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STRIKE CONTINUED

• Private Public Partnership -Consultations occurred between management, university Council and the SRC through quarterly meetings held in which the students concerns on ideological disagreements were taken into considerations. -Management clarified further that the buildings will not be owned by the private company but till remain assets of the university.

• Residence security -The Biometric Systems were implemented to ensure the safety of students, an ongoing concern in the university. This security system is has been tested elsewhere as has proven safe; and does not encouraged congestion.

• Double Bunk Bed Systems- The students have opposed this system and it will not be introduced.

• Residence allocation -The system was introduced to ensure accountability in the process of residence allocation The Vice Chancellor has since requested the closure of the university following the violence of the strike.

[Zokwanda Rasmeni]

Page 7Lutho Mabandla

Orientation

Xenophobia, the stumbling block to peaceIt may be shocking to some people in this country to realize that, without meaning to do so, they hold views in common with Hitler when they preach discrimination against other religious, racial or economic groups. ~~Henry A. Wallace

"When are you Zim going back to your country?" that was the statement that jolted me back to the harsh reality when I first came to South Africa. This Finnish woman working as an officer at the airport had chosen to ignore my passport which clearly stated I wasn’t from the Southern part of Africa. Foreigners in the Diaspora can bear witness to the fact that xenophobia is alive and breathing and has an annoying habit of rearing its ugly head more often than not; nagging that feeling of wondering why in the world people were stereotyping us, assuming that we all came from poor backgrounds, were thieves and rapists, that we were out to abuse their system or were just lazing around consuming the country’s resources.

During the 2008 xenophobia attracts several lives were lost and many more were injured. The devastated community retaliated by rioting and looting the nearby Somali businesses, an unreasonable and saddening reaction. But could we peg that only on momentary anger and sadness? It was the uproar on social media that left me aghast! Well educated, level headed people were up in arms damning foreign nationals back to their home countries. The insults and expletives that reigned the social sphere were totally shocking. Those who tried to speak for the foreigners were quickly shut down by others who would not hear of anything else.I have yet to see this much xenophobia in all other countries I have travelled. We need to be vigilant and careful of this blatant ignorance. It is the reason that most the African countries continue going backward instead of progressing. We needed to have embraced the Somali community (and other communities represented by their plight) in the fight against terror....not condemned them. This kind of xenophobia is not to be expected from a learned and exposed citizen. [Student Piece]

To f e a t u r e y o u r s t o r y o n t h e n e w s l e t t e r, e - m a i l u s o n : z r a s m e n i @ u f h . a c . z a

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“I have heard about the interim SRC. In the absence of the actual SRC, I think they have done a good job.”

“I have no idea who the Interim SRC is.”

“I don’t know them.”

Interim SRC receives mixed feelings from studentsThe Head Convener of the interim Students Representative Council, Bulali

Rawana believes there should be no leadership vacuum following the decision

by all Fort Hare stakeholders not have SRC elections owing to the material

conditions that existed when the elections were expected take place in October

last year. Hence he believes that the formation of the interim structure, which is

made up of two representatives from six different students’ political structures,

was a necessary resolution. The interim SRC was given the clear mandate of

facilitating the SRC elections early next year, and more significantly, to be the

voice of students during the registration period for the 2013 academic year.

Rawana said; “we want to bring new creativity, restore dignity to all the

processes and redefine the role of SRC and set pace for proper service delivery

not only during registration but for the future of the SRC; which will require

cooperation from students, transparency and accountability from our collective”

The formation of the interim SRC was met with mixed feelings from the student

body. Some students commended the formation of the interim SRC. COPE

representative, Mayihlome had this to say; “we want results and we wish the

SRC the best”; Zuzake Noganta who is the former SRC member said, “I think its

high time that we support and respect our leaders, all they need is support from

us not critics, let's offer advice where we see a need for it let's give information

where it is needed.” Other students believe that the interim SRC “were just a

stop-gap measure since UFH did not have SRC elections”; this is according to

Junior Tshefu. Tshefu was extremely disappointed by the SRC’s inaction during

the registration and administration of new students. He believes however that;

“the SRC should work as a team not as individuals as the students are expecting

the whole team to be victorious, not individual organisations.” [Siphokazi Manzi]

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Department NewsThe University of Fort Hare is offering a 1 year full time program namely, “Advanced Diploma in Accounting”, to enable students to advance to the Post Graduate Diploma in Accounting. This program is designed for students with a Bachelor’s Degree of Commerce in Accounting from non-accredited universities or students who did not meet the entry requirements for the PG Dip Acc. Admission to the program is at the discretion of the Head of Department and will be based mainly on prior academic performance. If successful at the end of this program students will receive a Diploma in recognition of their efforts. In addition to the academic part of the year the students will be invited to take part in team building events as well as formal introductory functions to provide them with the building blocks for the PG Dip Acc program. This is an exciting programme that offers students another means of entry into PG Dip Acc and to ultimately fulfilling their dreams of qualifying as Chartered Accountants.

Department of AccountingWhere Everyone Counts

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The Steve Biko Centre

The Steve Biko Centre was officially open on the 12th of October 2012. The centre, which is dedicated to the pioneer of the Black Consciousness movement, was built to commemorate the historic and unfolding culture of liberation among African people universally. The Centre comprises a museum, an archive and library resource centre, a commemorative garden honouring human rights activists, training facilities, cultural performance and production spaces, a community media centre and retail spaces.

S IS FOR SAMORA Sarah LeFanu’s S is for Samora is a Lexical Biography of Samora Machel and the Mozambican Dream. A highly readable, informative and entertaining guide of the life and times of Mozambique’s revolutionary leader and first President Samora Moises Machel. A must read for those interested in the revolutionary history of Southern Africa. [Thomas Blaser]

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Django Unchained is a long, powerful film, with psychological points made with considerable subtlety and wit. Django, a slave freed in the deep south two years before the civil war who forms a curious alliance with an itinerant German, Dr King Schultz and shoots his way across pre-civil war America to rescue his wife, Broomhilda, from a plantation deep in the American South. Tarantino takes Schultz and Django on a physical, moral and psychological journey over a variety of evocative terrains, during which the bond between them is forged and the violence proceeds exponentially. Because of this flick, Quinton Terantino been described as the most impressive film-makers at work today. [Phillip French]

Next event: 22 February; 19h30 @ The Steve Biko Centre Amphitheatre. Dom Coyote, London based musician and storyteller; the Steve Biko Centre's Abelusi; Elethu (UFH Music student) will be performing an evocative image, astonishing sounds and magical journey of stories through live songs and music.

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UFH Cricket starJerry Maphelo began his studies at University in 2010 and is currently in his 3rd year of Bachelor of Human Movement Science studies. Maphelo has left an indelible mark in the university’s sports fields; his achievements spanning both region and national cricket fields. In 2010, he formed part of the SA U/19 Squad that played in the U/19 Cricket world cup and in the same year received a Warriors Contract for two years; played for the Border Amateur Senior team, the Border Cricket Academy team and the UFH/CSA cricket academy. He was subsequently recognised as the 2010 sportsman of the year in the UFH greatest achievers awards, which he received again in 2011 and 2012. He continued to represent the warriors, the Border Amateur Senior team, the Border Cricket Academy team as well as the UFH/CSA cricket academy in 2011 and 2012. Maphelo captained the UFH cricket team that won the 2012 USSA Cricket A (B section week) and was in awarded for provincial colours and selected to the 2012 USSA Cricket Squad in the same year. Jerry Maphelo lives by the motto; “Always put others first and never be selfish” and his philosophy in life is; “Stay true to yourself because there are not too many people who will stay true to you”. [Siphokazi Manzi]

Blues committed to having a sterling season The FNB Fort Hare Blues kicked off the much anticipated Varsity Shield cup with crucial changes to the team. Coach Elliot Fana has had to contend with the loss of Thando Ndondo, who captained the team in 2012, lock Itumeleng Mokae and hooker Dalton Mavuso, who he says will not be easy to replace as they held critical positions whose boots will not be immediately filled by youngsters at that level of competition. Despite these changes, he still remains determined to see the team challenging some of the top sides of the Varsity Shield this year. "I don't want us to have a negative attitude and start thinking that Fort Hare is just there to add numbers, we are definitely there to compete," said Fana.

The Blues kicked off the season to a rough start when they took on the FNB UKZN Impi Peter Booysen Sports Park in Pietermaritzburg to take on last year's Wooden Spoonists, losing 19-7 to the home team. The second match of the season however allowed the boy to redeem themselves when they plummeted former Varsity Cup side TUT Varsity Cup side FNB TUT to secure a 32 – 6 victory when they played in Alice on the Monday 11th February. The FNB Blues will take on the FNB CUT in Bloemfontein in a very important clash in the tournament. Fana maintains the positive attitude ensconced at the beginning of the tournament confirming his confidence in the boys’ performance. "We need to be able to front up when we play an away game and manage the collision as we did against TUT then I think we should be able to compete," he said.

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FNB Fort Hare Team

15 Khanyiso Komani 14 Garth Van Rayner 13 Lundi Ralarala 12 Saneliso Ngoma 11Lithabile Mgwadleka10 Oliver Zono 9 Anele Tsiko 8 Nkosikhona Nofuma 7 Billy Dutton (captain), 6Onke Dubase5 Masixole David 4 Mzwandile Yalezo 3 Xola Mapapo 2 Luzuko Nyabaza 1Lwando Mabenge

Replacements16 Zuko Lerula 17 Siyabulela Sijula 18 Sibabalwe Tshoni 19 Andile Makinana 20 Khaya Siqoko21 Lutho Zatu 22 Lwando Makhongolo 23 Douglas Manyame

Upcoming Fixtures

Monday, February 11: FNB CUT v FNB UFH, CUT Rugby Stadium - 7pm

FNB UWC v FNB UKZN, UWC Sport Stadium - 7pmBye: FNB TUT

Monday, February 1FNB TUT v FNB CUT, TUT Stadium - 7pm

FNB UFH v FNB UWC, Davidson Rugby Stadium - 7pmBye: FNB UKZN

Monday, February 25: FNB UFH v FNB UKZN, Davidson Rugby Stadium - 7pm

FNB TUT v FNB UWC, TUT Stadium - 7pmBye: FNB CUT

Design & Layout:

INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENTDEPARTMENT OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

ALICE

Phone(Alice) : 040 602 2002Phone(East London) : 043 704 7578Fax : 086 626 2026E-mail : [email protected] [email protected]

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Editorial Team · Editorial Team hile having one of those casual conversations, though the interpretation of casual can never lean too much of the side of peer familiarity, with one