Belinda Bozzoli’s excellent article (The real cause of our student revolt is the shrinking of state aid for universities, October 14), highlighting that the state subsidy for the total cost of running universities has shrunk from 50% to 40% (and fallen in real terms) over the past 15 years, points to the fact that the students’ target for anger should be the government, not the universities themselves. The poor, embattled universities have no alternative but to raise fees when their other main source of funds, the government subsidy, falls. The late Allister Sparks, in another perceptive article in Business Day, pointed out that the government now spends more on its VIP protection services — the most prominent of which appears to be providing grotesque "blue light" flotillas to accompany the huge number of government ministers on their travels on our roads — than it spends on the nation’s universities. That gives some idea of where the current government’s priorities lie, and how it...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.