After the storm: UB students face backlog
Baboki Kayawe | Tuesday March 7, 2017 17:10
The one-week break normally occurs towards the end of March and spills over into the Easter holidays.
Director of Public Affairs, Mhitshane Reetsang told Mmegi that plans are underway to extend the academic semester through removing the short vacation as the closure has badly impacted the academic calendar.
“There are plans to extend the semester. Students won't get the annual short vacation because we are concerned about them. They have lost a lot of time,” she said in an interview, adding that timely completion of studies is critical to avoid a backlog.
“It is important that they complete their studies and graduate on time in order to give way for the next intake,” she said.
Moving forward, she saaid, management and the student communities are seriously rethinking improving on communication channels to curb events such as these ones in the future.
“The Minister of Tertiary Education (Alfred Madigele) said there is need to resolve communication breakdown on the side of both parties,” Reetsang added. The UB spokesperson could not cost the damage to properties such as the Book Store and refectories. However, she said she hoped structures have been attended to and that the students will now have access to the facilities. The Book Store and one refectory were all operational yesterday, Mmegi established.
UBSRC president, Bakotelo Mmipi said the situation “is not bad at all,” and that the student leaders are meeting with management tomorrow to map a way forward.
“Management has also announced plans to meet with the student community soon in order to hear their concerns,” he said.
The proposed meeting will happen next week, where Madigele and other higher education managers will be in attendance.
However, the students are against the cancellation of the short vacation and are of the view that one week will not be sufficient to make for the lost time, explained Mmipi.
“We are proposing that management extends the semester. However, we are stuck in a circle of finger pointing as UB management keeps on saying had we not rioted this could not have happened. But had they too negotiated we wouldn’t be in this situation,” he added.
In hindsight, the blame game will not profit anyone, he said.
“We need to come up with a practical solution to this, or else its effects will be bad.
We will challenge the decision to cancel the short vacation though once the UB Council issues an almanac, we won’t have much of legal ground,” he said.
The institution opened to calm and the business of learning yesterday. Reetsang also confirmed the institution is experiencing “very welcome” stability.