Landlords threaten to evict students over unpaid NSFAS accommodation fees. Image: NSFAS.
(The Post News)– Some disgruntled landlords in Kimberley, Northern Cape, are accusing Sol Plaatje University and NSFAS of unfair treatment and of not upholding their contractual obligations.
This comes after NSFAS failed to pay accommodation fees for more than 500 students living in properties owned by the affected landlords. The business owners, who say they have gone unpaid for a year, claim they have lost confidence in the fund and are demanding greater transparency.
“We have been affected a lot. We have downsized our workers from twenty workers to five workers. We have issues with the council and with the water and lights. We have a bill of close to a million rand that we need to pay every month, and it is a problem paying it,” says one of the landlords, Mustafa Obaray. He explained that they had been covering transport for the students but can no longer afford to do so, as their buses are no longer operational due to lack of funds. He added that the university and those responsible for making payments are victimizing them.
NSFAS Non-Payment Also Affects Free State Students
In August, the Free State Student Accommodation Providers Forum also threatened to remove students from their properties if they don’t receive their payments from NSFAS by the end of the month. Meanwhile, Deputy Higher Education Minister Buti Manamela on Monday announced a R13 billion allocation to NSFAS aimed at assisting 34,000 students with blocked registrations and a further 15,000 registering for the second semester.
He added that the scheme was still at financial risk due to an increasing number of students qualifying for post-school education and training funding, the escalating cost of living, which has expanded the eligibility criteria, and declining state resources in real terms, but they will later in the year announce steps towards the sustainable funding reforms for NSFAS.
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