HUNGRY Lupane State University (LSU) students reportedly held a mini-protest on Tuesday evening demanding their meal allowances following their participation at the college and university sports games in Bulawayo.
BY NQOBANI NDLOVU
The games, organised by the Zimbabwe Tertiary Institutions’ Sports Association, began last Friday and ended yesterday. Students accused authorities of failing to take care of them by not giving them $10 each daily as meal allowances, despite assurances they would do so before the games.
They also claimed LSU failed to cater for their travelling expenses from their homes to an agreed meeting place in the central business district (CBD) by not giving them daily $1 as transport fares.
LSU was allegedly only providing transport from the central business district to the games, forcing students to then fork out their own money for transport from the CBD to their homes.
“We were supposed to be given the allowances before the games, but that did not happen. We participated under protest and on hungry stomachs with LSU promising to give us money before the games ended, and that too did not happen,” one student said.
The students, on Monday reportedly, had a meeting with LSU dean of students, only identified as Ncube, over the allowances, but failed to break the impasse.
“On Tuesday evening, after the games, the students refused to disembark from the bus at the agreed pick up-drop off point, demanding their promised allowances. Authorities tried talk us down but we refused as we had no money for transport to go home and they ended up taking us to our residences by bus,” another student added.
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LSU director of sports, Jabulani Mpofu declined to comment on the matter, saying he was not authorised to speak to the Press.
He referred Southern Eye to the institution’s spokesperson, Zwelithini Dlamini, who was unreachable on his mobile phone.
His deputy, Samkeliso Moyo said she was also not authorised to speak to the Press.
