The EFF Students Command (EFFSC) has welcomed the termination of contracts held by four service providers — Coinvest, eZaga Holdings, Noracco Corporation, and Tenet Technology — who were irregularly appointed by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) to disburse student allowances.
This comes after the NSFAS announced that for the remainder of the year, the payments would be made directly by universities and institutions of higher learning.
In a statement, dated July 11, the students financial scheme announced that it had withdrawn direct payments to the service providers and reverted to paying through institutions.
“Following a meeting between Universities South Africa (USA) and the National; Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) Administrator, Mr Freeman Nomvalo, NSFAS has resolved that for the remainder of the 2024 academic year, university students’ allowances will be distributed through institutions (universities).
“This means we will continue with the current arrangement where NSFAS disburses allowances to institutions, which then distribute allowances to students until the end of the 2024 academic year. This change does not impact the pilot accommodation process.”
Welcoming the announcement, the EFFSC’s acting secretary-general, Khanya Bungane, said, “This decision is a step in the right direction towards ensuring accountability and transparency in the management of student funds, and total eradication of any inconveniences towards students.”
The EFF and its youth wing have been vocal about the inefficiencies and delays caused by the service providers, with Bungane saying they were not only incapable, but also responsible for the backlogs and delays in the distribution of student allowances almost on a monthly basis.
“Such practices are unacceptable and have added unnecessary financial burdens on students who are already struggling,” Bungane said.
The latest announcement comes just weeks after the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) welcomed the recent Western Cape High Court ruling which dismissed with costs, an application by Ezaga Holdings, which sought to interdict the implementation of a Werksmans Attorneys report.
Ezaga Holdings is one of the service providers which was contracted to disburse funds to NSFAS beneficiaries.
In June, NSFAS administrator Freeman Nomvalo cancelled the contracts with Ezaga Holdings and three other service providers following the recommendations contained in the Werksmans Attorneys report.
The Star