DA forces Blade to apologise for “Students Must Fall” slur

3 December 2015

In a meeting today between leaders of University Student Councils and Minister Blade Nzimande, the DA President of the Fort Hare SRC forced Minister Nzimande to apologise for his “Students Must Fall” slur.

Busisiwe Mashiqa, who was elected as Fort Hare SRC President earlier this year, represented the DA at today’s meeting with Minister Nzimande and put it to him that his “Students Must Fall” slur was making a mockery of the financial exclusion experienced by many South African students.

Minister Nzimande has been widely criticised for proclaiming that students should fall at a time when students were desperately crying out for financial relief from government – relief Nzimande continues to deny them.

It is a great victory for the student movement that Minister Nzimande has been forced to apologise and withdraw, and a great victory for the DA that our pressure upon the Minister made him buckle.

The DA believes that under-funding of higher education in South Africa by this ANC government is a denial of opportunity to millions of young South Africans.

In an attempt to unlock more funding for higher education, the DA moved 26 amendments to the ANC’s wasteful budget, but the ANC voted against all of these, once again putting themselves before the people of South Africa.

Minister Nzimande has been humbled to his knees today as he apologises to all students through DA pressure, but the DA will not relent and will continue to pressure the Minister to fund more opportunities for students.

Issued by Yusuf Cassim, Youth Interim Leader, DA, 3 December 2015