By Thapelo Matlala Dozens of Rhodes University students are in a desperate situation after not receiving their National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) allowances since June this year. NSFAS is currently in the hot seat nationally for outsourcing the payment of monthly student allowances to financial intermediaries who have not maintained the payments efficiently since they took over on 1 July. Students have protested in Eastern Cape, Cape Town, Free State, Durban, and Tshwane against being cut off by NSFAS and left without money to survive. Dozens of students across the country have been arrested during the protests. At Rhodes…
Author: Thapelo Matlala
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By Thapelo Matlala Welcomed by elated students singing, icon and academic guru Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng celebrated Women’s Day at Rhodes University on 09 August 2023 by commemorating the brave women of 1956 who marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to protest against the oppressive system that denied them the right to vote, access urban areas and a fair working environment. The theme for the day was “Catalysing social change and empowering leadership for a sustainable future”, which was a testament to the remarkable contribution of women who have shaped the nation’s history and continue to demonstrate unwavering strength and…
By Thapelo Matlala The Makhanda Post Office’s electricity has been cut off by the municipality, leaving dozens of people unable to collect parcels or receive their social grants. Grocott’s Mail was reliably informed that the South African Post Office (SAPO) leases the building from a private individual, who had allegedly not been paid rent by SAPO and who therefore had stopped paying for electricity. The municipality allegedly disconnected the electricity on 25 July. The SAPO was placed under provisional liquidation six months ago and is now in business rescue. Grocott’s Mail visited the Makhanda Post office this week and met…
By Thapelo Matlala and Nwabisa Moyo The Rhodes University School of Journalism and Media Studies (JMS) unveiled a mural celebrating and honouring industry legends on 21 July at the Afrika Media Matrix. The mural depicts the legendary former South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) isiXhosa newsreader Dr. Noxolo Grootboom, former Daily Dispatch Editor Donald Woods, Editor of South Africa’s first indigenous language newspaper John Tengo Jabavu, ground-breaking woman writer Phyllis Ntantala-Jordan and Ernest Cole, the photographer whose famous book, House of Bondage helped to topple apartheid. Rhodes University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sizwe Mabizela, said: “The unveiling of the mural is part of…
By Thapelo Matlala Samela Tyelbooi and Muzi Mthabela from ‘Generations: The Legacy’ were a hit when they visited the Eluxolweni Child and Youth Centre in Makhanda on Mandela Day to commemorate and honour the living essence and virtue of the father of the nation – Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. Samela Tyelbooi and Muzi Mthabela from ‘Generations: The Legacy’ told the youth to dream big. Photo: Fahdia Msaka Eluxolweni used the day to collect shoes and soccer boots for the young residents. “God helped us to be in a place where this event could be possible”, said Tyelbooi, adding that she wanted…
By Thapelo Matlala A tapestry of enraged emotions has erupted amongst Rhodes University students after the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) outsourced the payment of living allowances to a private financial intermediary. Several financial intermediaries were recently appointed by NSFAS to disburse living allowances across the country, with Rhodes students informed on 22 June that their funds would be paid by Coinvest. The students were told that according to NSFAS, approved beneficiaries had been contacted via SMS or email with regards to the onboarding system (how to register themselves with the new bank). But students say the new banking…
By Thapelo Matlala At about 9pm on Sunday 21 May, a 23-year-old woman was found dead inside a bakery in Hill Street, Makhanda. Just one week later, the body of a 49-year-old man was found hanging from a tree in Worcester Street at 9am in the morning. Now police have confirmed that the deaths are connected – the 23 year old woman was the man’s daughter. Both hail from Zimbabwe. They say the deceased man “was a person of interest in the murder case, which occurred at the bakery in Makhanda on Sunday”, police spokesperson, Majola Nkohli, told Grocott’s Mail.…
By Thapelo Matlala If they want to avoid being ankle-deep in sewage, the Zekevu family in Extension Eight must walk over pieces of corrugated iron every time they step out of their front door and into their garden. Violet Zekevu (59) and her daughter Ncediswa Zekevu (40) placed the sheets of zinc over the sewage flooding around their house, in a vain attempt to stop their children from tracking sewage inside. A municipal sewage leak, which has gone unattended since December 2022, has seen sewage flood right up to their front door, with the road next to their house and…
By Thapelo Matlala After many years of doom and gloom and suffering with cataracts, 19 patients finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel after receiving surgery on 11 May. Grocott’s Mail previously reported that local Makhanda optometrist, Dr Trevor Davies and the Eiohn Hayes Foundation had partnered with Settlers’ (Provincial) Hospital, Medical Mission ESwatini and Grace Vision to conduct more than 30 cataract surgeries for public hospital patients who had been on a waiting list for up to four years. Evelyn Madlavu of Phumlani Extension Two was in a challenging situation as her eyesight had been declining…
By Thapelo Matlala When it rains it pours. Rhodes University students came out in their hundreds to attend a shutdown of the university on 8 and 9 May, which began at 5am on 8 May in Somerset Street. Local residents, and organizations like the Unemployed People’s Movement (UPM) and Makana Citizen’s Front (MCF) and religious leaders from the College of Transfiguration came out in solidarity with the students, protesting against the Makana Municipality’s inability to render quality water services. Rage was an understatement to describe the atmosphere of the scene, with students chanting at the top of their lungs, and…