By Charmaine Ndlela
The Economic Freedom Fighters Youth Command (EFFYC) has launched its Sizofunda Ngenkani (We will learn by any means necessary) campaign across universities and TVET colleges, calling on the education sector to ensure that schooling is delivered against all odds.
The campaign forms part of an annual push by the party’s youth structures at the beginning of the academic calendar, with previous iterations focused on preventing financially struggling students from being locked out of study because of debt, fees or administrative barriers.
EFFYC media liaison Phumelelani Mshumi told Inside Education that the main objective of the campaign is embedded in its name — to ensure that the doors of learning remain open to all deserving students, particularly blacks.
“To achieve this, we have dispersed ourselves across the higher education sector at all levels to ensure that students are able to access institutions of higher learning,” Mshumi said.
He said that the youth command operates through special branches that are established in communities, households, workplaces, and educational institutions, wherever young people are found.
In the context of higher education, the branches are located where a student base exists, and it is supported by branch leadership structures.
“We are also privileged to have won a popular vote in several Student Representative Councils (SRCs) across various institutions. We primarily operate through these branches and, by extension, through the SRCs we have won,” he added.
Mshumi said that on the ground, the EFFYC will assist students with academic and financial appeals, ensuring that deserving students are able to access education even if they did not initially apply.
“If you are a deserving student, we want to make sure that you enter the gates of learning,” he said. “However, because the higher education system in South Africa is highly overwhelmed, it is almost natural that protests will arise organically.”
He said that the EFFYC anticipates challenges such as NSFAS delays, unpaid allowances, and institutions claiming to be at full capacity despite the presence of deserving students.
Addressing the issue of online registration, Mshumi said there are two key aspects to supporting students. Firstly, universities must be responsive to the reality that many black students do not have access to computers or reliable internet.
“We urge institutions to run both systems — online registration and on-campus registration,” he said. “However, it would be anti-intellectual to oppose online registration entirely. Online registration reflects progress in the South African education system.”
He stressed that the EFFYC is not opposed to online registration, but insists that universities must be responsive to the country’s socio-economic context, particularly for first-time entering students. This includes providing physical registration options or telephonic assistance where necessary.
Mshumi also welcomed National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) efforts to cut out “middlemen” and pay allowances directly to providers from 2026, saying the “middlemen schemers” often “embezzle” funds without adding value.
“We wholeheartedly accept the move of accommodation allowances for students in private residences being paid directly to accredited accommodation providers, and we will keep a keen eye on how the process is administered going forward,” he said.
INSIDE EDUCATION
