Nsfas 'mix up' leaves students out in cold

STUDENTS evicted from residence.

Tshwane North TVET College students in Pretoria, were recently evicted after the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) allegedly failed to pay accommodation fees.

The students, many of whom are from neighbouring provinces and have no relatives in the area, are now struggling to find alternative accommodation. Some have even approached the local police station desperate for a place to sleep.

According to the Student Representative Council president, Amukelani Mavhasa, the trouble started when Nsfas paid out R13 000 to students without clearly specifying that R10 800 was for accommodation and the remaining R2 200 was for allowances.

Many students, unaware of the allocation, used the funds for other purposes, only to be later told that they needed to pay accommodation fees or face eviction.

"The accredited residences including Foundation, Boikhutsong, Thabo Sehume and Riverside evicted us after Nsfas failed to pay because of the R13 000 which they did not specify was for accommodation," said Mavhasa.

The situation became chaotic when some students received additional funding on Friday, 25 April with amounts ranging from R1 700 to R5 100.

However, their landlords, aware of the Nsfas payments, demanded immediate payment of the outstanding fees, threatening eviction if proof of payment wasn't provided.

"We have made an agreement with Nsfas that they will deduct each month until the affected students pay back the money, however they should pay for our accommodation," said Mavhasa.

In response to the crisis, Nsfas spokesman, Ishmael Mnisi said: "In light of this situation, Nsfas kindly requests that institutions promptly inform students residing in Nsfas accredited accommodation, who have received these funds intended for accommodation, to settle their outstanding payments with their landlords as soon as possible. Full remittances of the payments made to students have already been circulated to the institutions."