Some South African students studying at Wuhan University in Hubei province in China have not received their stipends for the past three months. Photo: Wuhan University/LinkedIn
Some South African students studying at Wuhan University in Hubei province in China have not received their stipends for the past three months because the Free State government allegedly instructed embassy officials in that country to stop the payments.
City Press understands that this issue is just the tip of the iceberg, as the 27 students are allegedly owed more than R25 million for books and visa permit allowances that have allegedly not been paid for the past three years.
The Free State government confirmed that there were “delays” in stipend payments, including late tuition fees. The provincial government attributed this to the repatriation of the students due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The province, however, did not respond to claims relating to unpaid funds for books and visa permit allowances, only stating that it was “working around the clock to resolve other issues” raised by the students.
Ruben Sondag, leader of a National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) branch that represents the students, said the stipends were stopped in March this year.
“Most of the people arrived early in 2020. We all received our stipends via our Chinese bank cards. March was the last time we got our stipends. What officials are saying is just an excuse. “The embassy was told to stop paying our stipends by April. The mission was advised not to proceed [paying] any student who was in South Africa,” Sondag said.
He said the nonpayment of stipends resulted in some of them being unable to buy data for online exams and to conduct research.
Sondag said those affected included three medical students, four finance, five accounting, and 15 international economics and trading students.
All we need is help from the Free State government to pay our stipends and tuition so that we can continue with our studies
Newman Chingwaru
Each of them, he said, was supposed to receive a R5 550 monthly stipend as well as a R23 430 annual book allowance and R2 400 for their visa permit.
Newman Chingwaru, deputy leader in the Nehawu branch, said students were willing to return to China when the pandemic had subsided and things return to normality.
“We need help to continue with our studies and online classes, which we have to finish before the end of this semester. Failure to so will lead to our repeating the year. All we need is help from the Free State government to pay our stipends and tuition so that we can continue with our studies,” Chingwaru said.
Fruitless interaction with embassy authorities
City Press has in its possession a trail of communication between the students and embassy officials in China. In an email dated April 7, the students asked the embassy whether their funds had been received.
Lesego Pelompe, who is referred to as a third secretary for corporate services and consular affairs on the department of international relations and cooperation’s website, responded on April 17, saying: “As previously mentioned, the mission has not received any new approvals from April 2021/22, therefore no payments can be done until approvals are received. As I said previously, it would be appreciated if you follow up with the relevant department in this regard.”
On April 19, the students sent another email to ask when their stipends would be paid, as they were busy with online exams and theses. “Most of them don’t have internet access and can’t afford to buy data,” the email reads.
In an email sent on April 27, Pelompe responded that “the mission was advised not to process any payments, as students are still in South Africa”.
She then referred students to the Free State government for further clarity.
‘Unintended delays’
Setjhaba Maphalla, spokesperson for Free State Premier Sisi Ntombela’s office, said that despite “unintended delays due to ratification and internal Public Finance Management Act processes, there was approval granted for payment of stipends and tuition for the students”.
The delay, Maphalla said, was also due to the fact that students had been back in the country since the beginning of the national state of disaster, which was declared in March last year.
The caring government of the Free State has attended to the matter expeditiously
Setjhaba Maphalla, spokesperson for Free State Premier Sisi Ntombela
“The students were part of the cohort [that was] repatriated by the national government during the beginning of the lockdown in 2020. As such, a benchmarking process had to be undertaken in consultation with the provincial treasury and the higher education, science [and innovation] department to ensure that the money paid was appropriate and justified, as students were no longer in the People’s Republic of China, but studying online and remotely from their respective homes.
“The students will thus get a stipend in line with the standards of living in South Africa, considering issues such as data for online studies, and not the R5 500 as stipulated by your publication, as they are no longer in China. After thorough considerations, the students will thus receive R2 500. “The caring government of the Free State has attended to the matter expeditiously ... Government continues to work around the clock to resolve other issues raised by the students,” Maphalla said
He added that the provincial government had a good story to tell as it had helped about 1 000 students to study abroad, pursuing degrees in subjects in areas that were identified as critical to the development of the province, including agriculture, engineering, trade, economics and business, as well as humanities and medicine.