No to Unima fees hike: Students get injunction against new fees structure

Sep 29, 2016 Politics 15
Advertisement
Malawi24
University of Malawi

Students from the Malawi Polytechnic have obtained an injunction to stop college administration from demanding them to pay the recently hiked fees at the college.

The High Court in Blantyre granted students the injunction after they argued that due to delays in the Polytechnic academic calendar, the college is still in 2015/2016 academic year and not in the 2016/2017 academic year when the new fees structure will be effected.

The University of Malawi (Unima) council raised the fees from K55,000 for government sponsored and  K250,00 for self-sponsored students to K350,000 but students at the Polytechnic will now use the old fees structure.

University of Malawi Polytechnic
Poly students not relenting.

“This court order means the Polytechnic students have a legal support to pay according to the old fees structure, thus K55,000 and K250,000 for government and self-sponsored students respectively,” reads part of a memorandum released on 28 September and signed by PSU publicity secretary Precious Chilundu

The Polytechnic students’ body has since notified all students that they are supposed to pay the old fees and not the newly introduced fees.

“As school commencement dates draw closer, the PSU office wishes to remind all students that the decision to pay according to old fees structures remains fixed,” it reads.

The PSU has also, in the memo, commended students who took and are still taking part in fighting against the recent fees hike.