Student politics has a rich history in the South African schooling landscape. From the historic 1976 student protests in Soweto to the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) rigorous campaign of #RhodesMustFall. And while time and context are different, in the last couple of years in the university landscape, student politics have been on the rise.
Stellenbosch University (SU) presents a different scenario in terms of student politics and politically led organisations as opposed to other universities. Whereas political student organisations like the Democratic Alliance Students Organisation (DASO), the South African Students Congress (SASCO) and the Economic Freedom Fighters Student Command (EFFSC) to name a few, contest leadership positions including posts in the Students Representative Council (SRC) at universities such as the University of the Western Cape (UWC) and the University of Pretoria (UP), SU students run independently and free from any political affiliation.
Thulani Hlatswayo (22), a former Branch Executive Committee member of SASCO Maties and BA Social Dynamics student, explains the role of student organisations on campus: “[Our role] is to drive the agenda of transformation, through critical engagements, planning and strategy and set an example for others to see and learn.
“The agenda of transformation is an ongoing matter. I was partially able to achieve the mission we set out, which was to champion various issues concerning the exclusion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and the broader student community.”
‘No appetite for political organisations’
Former DASO chairperson Lwando Nkamisa (25), believes SU students do not generally have an appetite for political student organisations. “By this I mean they do not see the need for political organisations.”
SASCO Maties Branch Secretary Maxwell Mlangeni (22), a 3rd year BSC in Forestry student, shares a different view. “Most students are aware of the role of student led organisations but choose to be ignorant towards organisations because some students choose to be apolitical.”
Nkamisa, who is doing his Masters in Agricultural Economics, adds that unlike other universities, there is little support from the university for political student organisations at SU. “When I was chairperson of DASO, we encountered a lot of resistance from the university [management]. For example, we were not allowed to campaign in the Neelsie because we were told that it is a semi-private space.”
Nkamisa adds that “students are weary of politics because they see being openly a member of a certain political party, people may ostracise you”.
‘Invest in student led organisations’
Hlatswayo believes that student led organisations still have relevance in university settings, “If students are taking part in leadership roles, there exists a sense of security and representation.”
“Nothing is perfect when it comes to leadership,” he warns. “Our successes might not be celebrated in public, but what matters is that we serve to our full potential and are laying a blueprint for ethical governance across all organisations.”
“People need to invest their time in student organisations,” Mlangeni adds. “In student led organisations one learns how to lead people who have different views from what you stand for. You also learn to stand firm for what you strongly believe in.”
‘It is not just about lectures and degrees’
“In the next five years I think student led organisations would be moving in a different direction. I think there will be a point where they will go to an extent of addressing community related issues with the understanding that we are members of the community before being university students. For example, I believe that the community of Kayamandi should be benefiting a lot from SU, looking at its location,” says Mlangeni.
According to Hlatswayo, “within the next five years, students will be more prepared than they are now for the working world even better. We need to remove the “there are things that the university does not teach you” notion. It is not only about the lectures and degrees at the end of the day but also increased participation within organisations other than academics. Furthermore just like an economy, within the next five years our feedback from what we are investing in now will be lucrative.”
And in the year of #SU100, where does Nkamisa position student led organisations? “As different organisations, we have tackled some issues on campus, such as the shuttle service and because of that the university needs to reconsider its attitude towards student led organisations”.