Cape Town - The new academic year, usually full of hope and promise, has started badly for students at the Cape University of Technology, with many forced to bed down in the institution’s Student Centre due to a shortage of accommodation.
For the past fortnight, more than 100 students, many of them first years, have been forced to sleep on the floor, stairs and benches in the centre, at the university’s District Six campus.
In the mornings, the students queue to use showers at the closest on-campus residences before attending classes.
The accommodation problem is set to get worse when senior students return to campus in the near future.
The university said the number of beds at its residences had dropped from 13 000 last year to just over 12 750. They said this was due to the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown on its service providers.
The pandemic had forced universities to shut; students had returned home and lectures were conducted online. The service providers – who provide the university with accommodation – were affected.
CPUT spokesperson Lauren Kansley said the university had increased its number of beds by 40%, from 8 000 in 2018/19.
She said accommodation placement officers have been trying to help the students.
Students said the officers were helpful on the first day and gave them forms on which to fill in their details. They were then told they would have to wait a day before being allocated to a residence.
While some students complained they had received no updates since then, other said their status on CPUT’s website regarding accommodation was still pending.
A 19-year-old student from Mqanduli in the Eastern Cape, who asked not to be named for fear of victimisation, said she had registered to do a Bachelor of Education degree. When she arrived, the placement officers told her that she had to sleep in the centre because she had not followed the correct procedure when applying for a place in the residence.
“I do not understand why we are made to sleep on the floor. We stand in long queues to shower and our belongings are not safe. We all charge our phones in the wall sockets and someone might steal them.”
She said the accommodation bungle had dampened her excitement.
“I am no longer excited about being in university because I thought I would be taken care of, since I come from far. We heard from people that there are residences that have spaces,” she said.
Sihle Ndeleni, 18, from Queenstown in the Eastern Cape, said she arrived last Wednesday, after having been accepted for an advanced diploma in internal auditing.
Her course had begun and she had written her first test on Friday and had two assignments due.
“I am getting left behind in the classes. I am also afraid that I might get sick while sleeping on the floor,” she said.
Ndeleni said the university did not have a catch-up plan for students who could not attend classes and who could not submit work, due to accommodation problems.
Student Avela Tshoba, 18, from the Eastern Cape, said some of her human resource course classes were online, and the wifi at the centre was slow. She said she was hungry and tired.
Ayakha Mthuzula, 19, from Dutywa in the Eastern Cape, said that during the application process, she had ticked a box to get accommodation.
“I thought I had applied for residence. (Placement officers) told me that students who sleep in the centre get assistance. I have submitted my details three times already,” she said.
A student from Bizana said she had de-registered, hoping to return home to the Eastern Cape. She said she had run out of money as she needed to buy fast food every day.
Student representative council (SRC) president Nanga Codana called on the university to arrange more residences for students.
Local SRC secretary for the campus, Zimasa Pama, said the problem with student accommodation was a recurring one, caused by confusion with the application system. There were also not enough placement officers.
A student leader for the Pan Africanist Students Movement of Azania said they were expecting the number of students seeking accommodation to grow, as there were senior returning students who are not placed.
The EFF Student Command said they were running out of patience and considering a “shutdown” of the institution.