UNESWA’S INDEFINITE CLOSURE IRKS STUDENTS

MANZINI – The University of Eswatini (UNESWA) has closed indefinitely, following the non-stop (waya-waya) strike by employees.

The employees are making a hue and cry over award performances (notching). The closure of the university happened amid the ongoing strike by members of the Association of Lecturers, Academic and Administrative Personnel (ALAAP), which began last Wednesday. The strike was initiated after a deadlock had been reached on the dispute between UNESWA and its employees, where a certificate of unresolved dispute was issued in February this year.

The university had been taken to the Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration Commission (CMAC), following grievances by the employees on the issue of salary adjustments. Management had offered employees three per cent cost-of-living adjustments (CoLA) but reportedly refused to allow staff to notch, yet in previous years, each CoLA award came with notching. The employees have not been receiving their notching since 2018, due to that the university had decried a shortage of funds.

The closure of the university was confirmed through a memo issued by the Registrar, Dr Salebona Simelane. The resolution to close the university was subsequent to a senate meeting held on Wednesday. All university students will be affected by the closure, as there will be no lectures. Simelane further mentioned that students should have vacated the university premises by 11am yesterday. The registrar noted, however, that registration should remain open until the closing date, Friday, March 31, 2023. He added that Moodle should remain open so that those who may wish to gain access to same may do so at will.

Meanwhile, when reacting to the university closure, ALAAP General Secretary Dr Mduduzi Shongwe, expressed that it was unfortunate that students had to be affected by the strike. A UNESWA student representative council (SRC) electoral officer said the students were negatively affected in that there were some who had not registered. She mentioned that this would prevent them from learning online. “This is quite sad because we did not play any role in contributing to the temporary closure of the university,” the electoral officer said. She also mentioned that some students from Luyengo had not gone home since they wished to complete the registration process.

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