The misallocation of R5-billion in National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funds to more than 40 000 undeserving students has left impoverished but academically deserving students out in the cold.
Nothando Mokoena, a law diploma student at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) campus in Mbombela, Mpumalanga, told Sunday World she had to scrounge for funds to pursue her studies after her application was rejected for dubious reasons. Even though she applied on time last year, submitted all her records and was eligible for NSFAS, the 21-year-old law diploma student said the fund claimed she did not meet the criteria ostensibly due to pending academic results.
This cost her much needed allowances for meals, textbooks and accommodation which others received. Mokoena, from Bushbuckridge, is one of the three children of a single mother who works in the retail sector in Gauteng. “Last year I was enrolled at Ehlanzeni TVET College in order to avoid a gap year. So, during that period I applied for NSFAS because I was already accepted to join TUT.
“Indeed, this year I joined TUT and I was surprised that my fellow students were already getting allowances. When I enquired about my status, I was told that NSFAS was awaiting my academic results for eligibility,” said Mokoena. Mokoena said she finally received an email telling her that her application had been rejected because of the pending results from a government-owned institution. “I am so frustrated right now because I only receive support from my single mother. NSFAS told me that the TVT college had not released my results.
“I hope that those in charge of the processes would consider my appeal and allow me to gain access to NSFAS because without it I honestly don’t see myself completing the year because finances are tight.”
Mokoena is one of thousands of poor students who have been unduly denied funding in recent years while those who did not qualify benefited.
According to the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), preliminary investigations revealed that more than R5-billion was “possibly assigned to students who did not qualify”. The SIU presented its findings to Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts this week.
“The SIU’s investigations have so far revealed that more than 40 000 students in 76 institutions of higher education have been possibly funded incorrectly. These are students whose household income is above R350 000 and therefore do not qualify for NSFAS funding.
“These students did not submit their parent’s details upon application and therefore the means test was not properly conducted. Furthermore, the SIU has facilitated a refund or managed to ring-fence approximately R38.3-million possibly due to NSFAS from three TVET colleges,” said SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago.
Kganyago said two of the colleges were in Western Cape and one from Mpumalanga.
“The SIU is in the process of engaging other institutions to determine if they are holding any overpayments that need to be ring-fenced pending the finalisation of the investigation.
“The SIU’s investigation shows that NSFAS failed to design and implement controls that would ensure that there is an annual reconciliation between the funds disbursed to the institutions and the funded list of registered students,” he said.
“This control weakness led to overpayments and underpayments of funds to the different institutions for the period 2017 to date. To remedy this, NSFAS has recently appointed a service provider to assist them”.
“The different governance levels and senior management staff did not fully discharge their duties in terms of all the different applicable legislation,” Kganyago said.
The developments have triggered the five-year imprisonment sentence given to Walter Sisulu University student Sibongile Mani. Mani was sentenced in the East London Regional Court last May. She was found guilty of spending more than R800 000 from R14-million that was mistakenly transferred to her NSFAS account several years ago.
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