Johannesburg - There seems to be light at the end of what was certainly a very dark tunnel for the 229 SA students studying at universities across Russia. But the battle is far from over. On the one side the Mpumalanga Department of Basic Education said the situation is being resolved but students in Moscow are accusing the department of lying.
Last week, Independent Newspapers reported that the students faced eviction and possible expulsion because their rent and tuition fees were not paid.
The Mpumalanga Department of Education now said it’s making every effort possible to ensure that their studies in the Russian Federation are at no stage compromised. Spokesperson Jasper Zwane said the department is working around the clock and in the best interest of students and will not rest until all issues aimed at advancing their studies are addressed within the stipulated time-lines.
Zwane committed that no student will be evicted from their homes or expelled from universities.
“To date, the Department has been able to transfer stipends to almost all the students except for six whose bank details were not enabled. The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) offered to assist to disperse the funds to different Universities. To this end, the department has already transferred money to Dirco as well as the list of all students,” he said.
And while the news is good, the admin that now follows may still result in further delays for some students who have not received their monthly stipends for four months. Dirco has now requested universities in Russia to submit to them the invoices to enable them to effect payments.
“As of now, Dirco is still awaiting to receive the invoices from the different universities in Russia. As soon as universities submit the requested invoices to Dirco, money for tuition and accommodation will be transferred. The department is also finalising arrangements for officials to travel to Russia to unlock all other remaining bottlenecks.
“The department regrets the delays in this regard as well as the inconvenience it has caused. We hope that students will appreciate the fact that the department could not solicit the services of Racus (the managing agency) in this regard for two reasons. The contract with Racus has since expired and the auditor general issued a repeat finding relating to the Racus. This was because the AG requested documents which they could not submit,” Zwane added.
The department has also issued an order for its travel agent to assist students whose visas and medical certificates will expire soon.
This week, Independent newspapers spoke to two of the affected students who said many of the students were now borrowing money from each other to survive.
Victoria Maheso, a final year Applied Mathematics and Computer Science student in Moscow, said they were making their own arrangements with the universities.
“I am in daily contact with at least 25 students who have not received their stipends in four months. The department is lying. We have been assisted by the We Are South Africans Foundation (Wasa) and the agent whose contract they didn’t renew. I went to the embassy myself to sort out my visa,” she said.
Trueman Mahlangu, who is a third-year Civil Engineering student in Nizhny Novgorod, said he was forced to move from a private residence and is now living in a hostel.
“I borrowed money from friends and family to pay my rent. Some students are even squatting with each other. I must admit I am getting despaired. This is very disturbing. Even though my family is very supportive, I am too old to keep asking them to help me,” he said.
In another development, Wasa founder, Gilbert Martin said they will be formally withdrawing from the matter between the South African students in Russia and wish them well in their future endeavours.
“We have assisted and ensured that they will not be evicted/arrested or deported.
“Due to certain rogue elements in the student leadership and their treatment of our staff, we have chosen to no longer engage with them and would like to thank them for trusting us to help them up until this point where it seems they should be fine.
“In future we will deal with parents/students on an individual basis and we are available to them should they need help and should feel free to share anything with us, or contact us should they need help from us. Our doors are always open to help fellow South Africans through messy situations such as these,” he said.
Martin said some nations were aghast with what is happening to them.
“It would have been a good story to tell about sending our children and youth abroad to bring the skills home to better our future, but many questions remain about the living standards, amounts being paid, and students stranded back in South Africa because of the payment bungle up and how the MPUEDU have messed this up every single year, long before the situation broke out between Russia and Ukraine,” Martin said.
Dirco, for the second week in a row, did not respond to questions despite Independent Media speaking to its spokesperson in Riyad, Saudi Arabia.