The Zimbabwe Telegraph
By Gertrude Gumede
13 September 2010
The Zimbabwe National Students union (ZINASU) would like to warn the government of Zimbabwe on the occasion, of the beginning of this schools term/semester to revise tuition fees downwards and bring to an end, the general chaotic situation in the education sector.
The opening of schools and colleges takes place at a time when the students are mourning the demise of the once vibrant education system in the country. The students in Zimbabwe continue to face plethora of challenges that manifest in restrictive tuition fees, brutality against student activists, incessant closure of halls of residence by the UZ authorities, the arbitrary suspensions and expulsion of students’ leaders and the general deterioration of the state of the whole sector.
Thousands of students in the country higher education centers could not sit for their end of semester examinations owing to unaffordable tuition fess while secondary and high schools students faced challenges of teachers strikes and examination registration complications for ‘O’ level and ‘A’ level students.
ZINASU learns that students were also forced to give incentives to teachers to augment their poor salaries which unfortunately, the Minister of Education, Sports and Culture, Mr. David Coltart has endorsed. It is against this background that we call upon government on this day to take education seriously and stop burdening parents and students. ZINASU advises that it is the inherent obligation of any responsible government to provide education for its people.
ZINASU therefore, warns of mass action by students if the government of Zimbabwe does not heed to the call to save the future of young people and students in particular, whose right to education has been defeated by the privatization oriented policies of the inclusive government.
Finally, ZINASU urges the government of Zimbabwe to take drastic and appropriate measures to address the plight of the students of Zimbabwe.