Johannesburg - Maladministration by the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University's (NMMU) SRC needs to be urgently addressed, the DA Youth said on Tuesday.
“Under the leadership of the Sasco-led SRC there has been gross maladministration and wasteful expenditure going on behind the scenes,” chairman Yusuf Cassim said in a statement.
He said the university's student governance and development department had oversight of the Student Representative Council (SRC) budget. However, the effectiveness of this oversight was questionable.
SA Students' Congress (Sasco) president Ntuthuko Makhombothi, contacted by Sapa for comment, asked for the DA Youth's allegations to be e-mailed to him.
Cassim said the SRC officer responsible for oversight had approved expenses which violated a management committee resolution.
“In most transactions, the expenditure is dramatically different from the proposed budget which was tabled before and approved by the student body at the first sitting of student parliament,” Cassim said.
The SRC's expenditure allegedly included R37,409 for Sasco members' academic fees, R169 138 at restaurants and for catering services, and R78,034 for accommodation at guest houses.
The SRC operational budget was R1 918 806, but it had already spent R 1 671 356 by August 7. The SRC further used funds to hire cars, in contravention of university policy.
Cassim said the treasurer general was required to prepare and present quarterly financial reports, which had been ignored, and the student governance and development department had allowed it.
“The SRC constitution goes as far as also mandating a compulsory yearly audit,” Cassim said.
“This too, is a sanction the department of student governance and development has failed to oversee for a number of years.”
Cassim said the DA Students Organisation at NMMU wanted the student governance department to look into the matter.
“We are demanding that the Sasco-led SRC be held to account for their actions and repay these public funds that essentially should belong to all students,” he said.
Sapa