SEDIBENG.- The Vaal University of Technology’s (VUT) Interim Student Representative Council (ISRC) participated in a meeting with the team from Finance last week to address the concerns raised by the protesting students last week. VUT’s Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Kediemetse Mokotsi told Sedibeng Ster that the ISRC proposed that the Financial Aid Office should focus on disbursing R5 200 allowances to students and that seemed to be the demand from the protesting students.

“It was suggested that students were supposed to decide themselves what learning material to purchase. Apparently, some students were not interested in laptops, but they wanted to buy books or other related learning materials. That was made more urgent by the fact that classes had resumed and some of the students did not have learning material,” said Mokotsi adding that the process of disbursing allowances must be in line with NSFAS guidelines. “In view of the impasse, the Financial Aid office was mandated to communicate with NSFAS office in order to find latest information about students who had already indicated whether they want laptop or not. Students are urged to visit NSFAS portal and complete the required information. This will speed up the process of disbursing allowances. “The update will be made available to NSFAS funded students and ISRC.”