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E H T 00 1 P TO TION I D E
News Features
The Annual Donkey Parade creates awareness about the care of donkeys in Grahamstown. Photo: JOSHUA OATES According to Hope, many of the cart-owners, or carties as they are known, take such pride in their donkeys and carts that, they invite them [other carties] to the clinics or, if they resist, actually take us to their houses so that their issues can be addressed. At the clinics the cart owners are taught how to properly treat wounds such as abscesses. However, care isnt only provided at the clinics. If there is anything in the meantime that requires more drastic care, the cart owners all know how to find Annerie and she liaises with me about what is required to be done, said Hope. All this assistance is necessary as the donkey cart owners have never had the opportunity to have proper carting training. This education drive is also incorporated into the Donkey Parade day as the cart owners have the opportunity to speak to the members of ECHCU about their needs. Along with the collaboration of these two NGOs, the SPCA is also involved in helping to look after donkeys specifically those who get lost or are brought in because they need special care. Although they do not collaborate with ECHCU and MDA, the animal
News Features
In Matthews view, this raises an interesting trade-off. In order to create comfort for some, it is possible that others will be forced into discomfort. Even more importantly, who gets to decide who is discomforted and in what ways they will be discomforted? A white male academic, for example, would disempower his own position by the very act of engaging with diversity programmes, and this could be a reason as to why transformation has been unsuccessful at whitemale-dominated Rhodes. Through transformation, he would, even if he supported it, be less empowered than he was before. Without enforcement and monitoring, transformation is something that will, in many cases, not be promoted. Matthews said, Rhodes is very touchy about managerialism but we also have to not confuse the issues. There is bad managerialism, but transformation is also something that has to be driven and you cant just leave alone those who dont want to get involved.
An ANC voting poster is used to make a school sign in Manley Flats. Photo: GABRIELLA FREGONA
The report of the CHE task team argues that a carefully constructed curriculum spanning four years will allow more students to graduate.
- Dean of Teaching and Learning Professor Chrissie Boughey There are other concerns relating to the implementation of a four year degree. The additional year implies extra costs a concern in a country where many students cannot afford higher education as it is. Boughey suggested, however, that in practice the additional fourth year would not add any extra costs due to the high number of students who take four years to complete their degrees anyway. The difference will be that some students will have to face the fact that they are going to have to take four years upfront at the beginning of their time at university rather than simply adapting to that fact once they begin to fail, said Boughey. Boughey added that, ideally, funding organisations like the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) of South Africa and student loans are going to have to take into account that students are going to take four years to complete their degree and factor that into what they offer students. There is the additional concern that
Positives
New courses will be developed but the existing courses will also be improved.
Negatives
The amount of students that will be successful enough to graduate is likely to increase drastically from what it has been in the past. The students who would have never been able to graduate in the current structure but have the potential to will have the opportunity to do so. When students fail courses, their degree curriculum loses coherence - they literally start to search for credits all over the place. The proposal aims at preventing this.
adventurous and sensitive sides which are so often lost in school. Scarr confirmed that the discussions are still only in the early stages and that those involved in the talks only have a broad idea of what the Common Course could entail. Director of the Allan Gray Centre for Leadership Ethics Professor Pedro Tabensky has also been involved in discussions around the Common Course. He said that he is fully supportive of the proposal being implemented at Rhodes.
the extension of the undergraduate degree will result in students spending one more year without any work experience, while those who have graduated in three years will have started working already. Boughey argued that this could be circumvented by students who take the fast track. Critical to the CHE Task Teams argument is that any student who can complete [their degree] in three years should be allowed to complete in that time. In other words, they should be fast tracked through the system. This would mean that the 36 percent of Rhodes students who do complete their degree in three years can continue to do so. How best to implement such a scheme is still up for discussion.The idea is to decide who could be fast tracked either on admission (based on matriculation scores or on performance in the National Benchmark Tests) or to move people onto a fast track in the first term of their first year based on test and assignment results. The proposal allows students and parents to come to terms with the potential difficulties of university before they fail. The flexible curriculum will address the problem of students being underprepared, which Boughey argues is too common in South Africa. According to Boughey, it has long been acknowledged that students who are underprepared for tertiary study need more time and more tuition if they are to complete their degrees. The four-year proposal aims to bring students into the courses without letting them fail. Boughey insisted that the proposal is only dealing with the status quo it is addressing what is actually happening already. As for the prevailing attitude that students who do not complete their degree in three years at Rhodes drink too much and party too hard, Boughey argued that there are even more students who do not party too much and still fail. The proposed change will not address the problem of students who seem determined not to do any work whatever the conditions, said Boughey. However, it has the potential to help those who start to fail for other reasons.
28%
flexible programme it will
The full-time equivalent (FTE) academic staff is currently 10 288 and with the
increase to 11 687
52%
21%
R716 Million
The amount to which the total average annual additional subsidy will increase
16%
Not all the problems which may cause failure will be addressed by the implementation of the new programme. There will be a separation amongst students who can excel in three years and those who take the longer route of four years. It will require a lot of work for the University as a whole as they prepare for the implementation of the new programme. Huge amounts of funding will be administered by the Government which has been known to be unreliable in the past.
graduate in the General Bachelor Degree graduate in the Diploma Degree graduate in Professional Bachelors Degree
In 2006, only 27% of students in SA graduated within the regulation three years
compared to
News Features
How affordable is the flexible programme?
By Mila Kakaza The funding of the proposed flexible programme is an important point that needs to be made transparent in order to prove its feasibility to the public. The most important perspective may be that of the state, as the change will have a big impact in terms of subsidies and NSFAS contributions. A comparison between the status quo of tertiary curricula and the proposed flexible programme showed that for a general Bachelors Degree the amount would shift from a total cost of R147 267 to R131 156 per graduate. For a four year degree the amount would shift from a total cost of R225 656 to R206 337 per graduate. Diplomas would also decrease from R177 090 to R161 707 per graduate. The funds for the flexible programme will be sourced from various grant schemes. In order for the new curriculum to be introduced, the Teaching Development Grant which allocated R576 million for the 2013/14 financial year could possibly help with staff development and a re-structuring of the curriculum. The Department of Higher Education and Training foundation grant scheme would possibly be removed as there might be no need for extended curriculum programmes should the change be made. Although some students may be of the opinion that an additional year of university fees would be an extra financial burden, the reality is actually much less stressful. Not only are decreases in costs expected across the board, but the programme is also set to be flexible. Students may still be able to graduate within three years, but it has also been noted that many students already take at least one additional year of study anyway.
15 October 2013
There is no sharing of ideas and no building of a community within Rhodes. We are basically fitted into the mould of a student.
- Adrian Romeo
We expect this fall in sales every December as students account for a large number of our sales.
- Zama Tambo, Oasis employee as a customer base but includes local residents of Grahamstown too and we serve as a gateway for tourists on their way to neighbouring cities, explained one of the managers of the Rat and Parrot, Tafadzwa Nyakotyo, when asked about the impact of the holidays. Nevertheless, the general consensus is that Rhodes students are missed by Grahamstown businesses. Whether it is water, liquor or grocery sales, students are a key source of income, stimulating the economy with their expenditure. While certain local residents of Grahamstown who feel the students are loud and disruptive may enjoy a respite for a few weeks, ultimately this presents a potentially dire period for businesses who largely rely on the students for revenue.
News Features
Many stores around Grahamstown have a large student client base. Photo: KELLAN BOTHA
News Features
15 October 2013
stitched together in particular ways for particular ends. Is there ever space to remember as human beings? asked Owen. As South African society progresses from its official liberation in 1994, the meaning of public memorials and holidays will inevitably change with new generations being educated and informed about the past. This also means that the meaning behind public holidays will change. On the issue of Heritage Day being unofficially renamed Braai Day, student Kelly Solomon said, Braaiing could be considered part of South African culture, but whose culture and heritage is it originally? On the other hand, is it wrong to want to forget painful memories and focus on the present and future? What Solomon raises is something that is often left out of the major retelling of South African history that those involved in the liberation struggle suffered in many ways. Constant attempts to reinvoke the past for political or other means can cause significant stress to the very people who brought our country to where it is today.
What do you think of the way we celebrate public holidays in South Africa today?
Public holidays are not celebrated for what they were created to commemorate. Neesha Bhana, BCom
I dont understand how Heritage Day is Braai Day. Isnt it supposed to be a celebration of our culture? Nonhle Skosana, BJourn
Youth Day has all these big festivals and parties and you hardly find the actual meaning of the date being commemorated. Zoe Neocosmos, BA
South Africans see public holidays as free holidays now. Jabu Simelane, BA
Ive never committed to public holidays at Rhodes because little effort is made to celebrate them. It makes it difficult to get involved in anything there is a huge lack of recognition. Robert Stuart-Thompson, BSc
The Makana Municipality is wasting away as it relies on a nearly 200-year old infrastructure. Photo: KELLAN BOTHA efficiently manage MobiSAM. Boma said that the only reason why MobiSAM is seemingly ineffective is because the number of people registering for the system is not growing fast enough. The community has and is being told on a regular basis about MobiSAM and its registering process, said Boma. Radio Grahamstown has given us an hour slot on Tuesdays at 11am to talk about the aim of MobiSAM and what the municipality wants to achieve from it. The municipality has also recruited community development workers to do door-to-door visits in order to spread enough awareness about MobiSAM. We have also been providing citizens with simplified pamphlets explaining the registering process, Boma added. Professor Hannah Thinyane, from the Department of Computer Sciences and co-initiator of the programme, said that her team has been working with the Makana Municipality on a daily basis to get the project running. We are working with them to simplify a number of internal processes, such as what happens with reports (whether made by phone or on MobiSAM) and how to speed up response times, said Thinyane. She echoed Boma by confirming that the software was stable and had been working since its launch. However, Thinyane admits that it was not used during the water crisis where it was needed most. Unfortunately it wasnt used. The outage coincided with a large number of people from Communications at Makana being away for 10 days at an event, said Thinyane. She went on to say that she hopes that it will be used during the next outage. Boma has also acknowledged that the system is not working effectively because the few people who have registered have not been using the system properly. If you are a registered member of MobiSAM, you need to lay complaints about water, electricity or pipe breakages. Then the administrators of the system will respond to the
complaint immediately with the relevant information which will assist the person, or notify them of how the municipality will handle the issue at hand, he explained. Despite Bomas assurances that the system is up and running, Babalwa Madikwa, one of the trained staff members for MobiSAM, claimed that MobiSAM is not in effect yet. The last time we trained was in July for two weeks, she stated. The trained staff were not sure of how the system works and they said that they relied on the University to show them how it is supposed to work. This means that they have to wait on Rhodes to finalise everything. Boma, on the other hand, was adamant that there was no such issue and that Rhodes has done their part in terms of assisting the municipality with training and starting the system. The people who are meant to administer MobiSAM are trained. All they need to know is the internal system, which is basically knowing who to contact within the municipality when a problem is reported, said Boma. Nevertheless, the fact remains that this potentially valuable resource has yet to be put to good use.
Opinion
he month of October has always held strong political significance. On 15 October 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte began his self-imposed exile in Britain after his defeat at Waterloo and Martin Luther King Jr. received his Nobel Peace Prize in October 1964. This years tenth month is no different. The last weeks alone have seen the eruption of state violence against members of Durbans Abahlali baseMjondolo and, on the other side of the political spectrum, a recent march by the Red October movement against rampant white genocide, as it is described by one of the movements leaders, the ever-controversial Steve Hofmeyr. The Oppidan Press stands in solidarity with Abahlali baseMjondolo and call for a speedy resolution to the conflict. Conversely, we think that Red October is a divisive movement that uses uncontexualised facts and terror tactics to play on the discomfort of the post-apartheid South African space. So what does it mean to have two such opposing fights happening simultaneously? The actions taken by Durbans police services are not new, nor are they isolated to the eThekwini branch. Like in the case of Marikana, the response of the incumbent government to efforts towards accountability has been to (literally) shoot down those who would actively resist their marginalised position. Not unlike this, the Red October movement, although flimsy in facts and dangerous in nature, also represents a response to the notion that present-day South Africa is a paradise lost. This moment in South African politics should hold great gravitas. For a generation which often complains that we have no struggle, this months political events should convince you otherwise. Like the Students for Social Justice, who have supported Sbu Zikode and his compatriots in Durban, we all have a choice to make. Is it the case that this will gloss by us, perhaps only featuring on our Facebook timeline or Twitter pages? Or is it possible that, for whichever movement you stand, this is the time to make a full commitment? At The Oppidan Press, we are in the business of reporting the news so that students, staff and residents alike will be equipped with the largest, most comprehensive body of information in order to make informed choices. However, our work only has value if and when it translates into lived reality. This editorial marks our last formal comment for the year. In 2013, we have shaken off apathy, questioned our leadership and when goods and services have not been provided, have taken to the streets to demand a delivery on the promises of our past. This is the moment to act, to make our degrees and our newspapers worth the paper on which they are printed. So whether you resent the position of the white man in present day South Africa or you are moved by the death of shack dwellers in Durban, this is the moment to make that opinion count.
Wearing gowns to the protest made the Grahamstown water crisis look like a Rhodes issue. Photo: JOSHUA OATES
By Ben Rule and Simphiwe Gumede search for Grahamstown water crisis gives about 29 000 results on Google. Rhodes water crisis gets over 270 000 and Rhodes water protest over EIGHT MILLION. This is an apt reflection of the priority with which the government responded to the issue. The South African government has a history of responding to servicedelivery protests with everything except services. Although access to water is a right in this country (see section 27 of our Constitution), having water appears to be a privilege. a privilege afforded to the privileged. They are privileged because they have water. It is also starting to look like they only have water because they are privileged. From a position of equality (having had the water supply cut out), Rhodes University had water restored after nine days. Some parts of Grahamstown (areas of Joza, in particular) had water restored after two months. This was only because of Rhodes Universitys involvement, without which supply would probably have been non-existent for another two months. Our problem is that government apparently responds more quickly to some segments of its society than others. This can very easily create a culture of entitlement. Our problem with Rhodes is that its behaviour during the water protest was illustrative of both of these things. Disclaimer It is important to understand what we are not saying. This is not a personal attack on Dr Badat, Vice-Chancellor. We appreciate his involvement in the protest. We have a deep respect for his contribution to Rhodes University and indeed his contribution to South Africa. We would like to thank him for being pro-active in the aftermath of the protest and through the on-going water supply problems experienced by the campus. We are grateful to the university for organising the protest
The Oppidan Press publishes letters which are bona fide expressions of opinion provided that they are not clearly libellous, defamatory, racist or sexist. We publish anonymous letters, but as an act of good faith on your part, we require your full name. We reserve the right to shorten letters due to space constraints and to edit them for grammatical inaccuracies. Letters that do not make it into our print edition will be published on our website.
and its staff for joining us in solidarity. We also understand that the wearing of academic gowns during protest has been a tradition at Rhodes for a number of decades. Our Problem Our main problem is that the way the protest took place made it look like a Rhodes issue. It is not a Rhodes issue. It is a Grahamstown issue. Rhodes is a part of the broader community which was and still is affected by municipal incompetence. The municipality paid attention because it is Rhodes that raised the issue. The Presidency paid attention. Parliament paid attention (the Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs was asked a question about Rhodes in session on 23 August.) The internet pays attention. Carte Blanche payed attention. This is the problem: by writing an open letter and walking into town (some people in gowns) over a lunchbreak, Rhodes University gets national attention. The Occupy Grahamstown movement had to physically throw human excrement on to the entrance of the municipality in 2011 to get limited local attention. Not services. Attention. The people of eMacambini in northern KwaZulu-Natal had to block a highway in 2008 for their protest to get close to the attention Rhodes received. Needless to say, Kwazulu-Natal police were soon in attendance and shots were fired. The Rhodes protest served as a bitter reminder that the same problems are treated differently by the government and media, depending on whose problems they are. This is similar to the bitter reminder we get every time there is a celebrity adoption that a lot of the western media is more concerned about Madonna or Angelina Jolie than they are about the children of Africa. Our problem with the use of academic gowns in the protest is that it clearly and visually distinguishes between us - the upper-middle, economically important class, and them
Well protest when Badat is wearing tekkies and jeans, holding a petrol bomb in one hand and a knobkerrie in the other.
- the people who are more in need of services than we are, who have to use shocking or violent tactics simply to get this fact heard. We have gowns. They dont. More often than not, we have services. More often than not, they dont. When we protest, we get services. When they protest (the SAME protests), they get shot. Second-class citizens A further emphasis of the divide was the phrase in the open letter: We feel we are being treated like second-class citizens. This we is distinct from the them in the previous paragraph the other residents in Makana. We are being treated in the same way the government treats its secondclass citizens. We feel this because we T have no water. Second-class citizens have no water. They have no water. You are treating us like you treat them. We will not stand for this.So why are we so important? Some of us will go on to make ground-breaking contributions to our fields of study. Some of us will shape the direction of business in South Africa. Others of us will spend our lives making material differences to the communities of this country. And some of us will continue to waste our parents money, our lecturers time and our livers capacity to regenerate themselves. The fact is, we do not deserve water any more than anybody else in this town. Putting on gowns to protest makes it seem like we think we do.
15 October 2013
Opinion
Womens magazines tend to revolve around what women should look like or what they should do to be seen as sexy. PHOTO: GABRIELLA FREGONA line of this article is When it comes to sex, why settle for great when you can go for mind-blowing? Even better is when its so mind-blowing that the lucky man youre with puts you at the top of his best-ever list. So even though you may have thought you had a terrible night and rated him in your bottom three if you made it onto his top three then you actually had a great night. And whats so liberating about FIRST
If a womens magazine cant even use the word vagina, how liberating can it be?
TAKE OFF HIS PANTS: Next, Treat Him to the Sexy Strokes Hes Been Craving All AlongBut Wont Ask For (November 2010)? To me, that
doesnt sound too liberating at all. Cosmo seems to be focused on how best to do it for your man and not how to look after yourself. Own His Orgasm (What Men Secretly Want Right Before Blast Off) (November 2010) is another example of this. But wheres the article about how to own your own orgasm? I find it ridiculous that young women are more worried about how to please their boyfriend (or their one night stand)
There are questions as to whether enforcing dry res in O-week will help alleviate the drinking culture. PHOTO: JODI VAN VUUREN
Opinion
By Ben Rule
Student Apathy
. House committees are chosen through an election process rather than through a selection process. Photo: KELLAN BOTHA
By Colin Mkhize and Lonwabo Nodada ouse committees on campus are always the subject of much discussion in terms of their effectiveness or the willingness of the committee members to actually do their work. The calibre of students in these positions is sometimes doubtful, with a lot of people just applying for House Comm in order to be able to come back for OWeek and party. After O-Week, a lot of people on these committees fall under the radar and do not fulfil their mandate. In the majority of residences on campus, the people on House Comm are elected by their fellow housemates at a house meeting which could result in a popularity contest. This may not be a bad thing, but a lot of the time the people elected are not the best fit for the position. There is a clear alternative to an election process and it may be time for campus to start exploring that. Election By Lonwabo Nodada I have been in residence for four years now and the one thing that I have grown to have a love/hate relationship with is the House Comm election process. Nominating people for House Comm and listening to their (sometimes) passionate and inspired speeches was fun in first year. I became
indifferent in second year, it was tolerable in third year and now it is just a tedious and visibly flawed process. My issue with the process of voting in House Comm is how unbelievably frivolous it seems. Friends elect friends with little to no experience for the applied position. How, I ask you with tears in my eyes, is a first-year student majoring in Drama and Philosophy supposed to be a Treasurer? More importantly, why on earth do people vote for them? It couldnt possibly have anything to do with the brownies and chocolates she gave away during her motivation speech, could it? The people expecting her to handle their finances couldnt be that irresponsible, could they? Well, they could. And they usually are. The mentality is often yes, the other girl had incredible motivation with great examples of previous experience, but you had chocolate so you win. It makes absolutely no sense to me.We get Community Engagement representatives who never organise a single event; Entertainment reps who rely on the rest of the Comm to help them with residence parties; Tuck Shop reps who dont seem to understand the concept of stocking up on goods. It all happens, and we have nobody to blame but ourselves. Selection By Colin Mkhize In Lilian Ngoyi Hall, the possibility of a popularity contest is eliminated by
having people apply for the position which they are most suited for. They submit an application with their motivation, ideas and credentials (if any). These applications are then screened by a selection committee which ultimately decides who gets the job. The selection committee is representative of the entire house. In a house meeting, one person from each year (first year through to Honours) is chosen to sit on the committee alongside the incoming and outgoing senior student and incoming sub-warden(s). The selection committee has the opportunity to choose the best fit of people to be on the House Comm. This is a very important aspect as positive group dynamics contribute a lot to the effectiveness of the house committee. In my time as a Sub-Warden of Joe Slovo House, I was involved in the House Comm selection process. I remember having lengthy discussions about the suitability of candidates for each portfolio and who would be the best fit for the job. Written applications also provide a standard to which candidates can be held to after election. I really feel that this process should be implemented across campus, as it eliminates a lot of the risks associated with the popularity election. It is fair, allows for more informed candidates (as they really have to show a good understanding of the position in their application) and is a good way of developing a level of professionalism among students.
11
Students are excited about the new Grand Theft Auto 5 which has expanded the famous Los Santos. Photo: TIFFANY MAJERO more elaborate missions. Some missions, such as the one where the FBI contracts you to save a hostage from a high rise building, are particularly well thought out. You will come to share your characters sense of urgency and watch as the relationships between very different characters slowly progress.This game is all about decisions. From the character you choose to the missions you take on, its all about your choices. If you want to invest in property or try your luck on the stock exchange, you can. The game feels like previous GTA titles had a dinner party and invited the likes of Red Dead Redemption, The Saboteur, The Sims and Need For Speed to all make one meal that culminated in the rich tasty masterpiece that is Grand Theft Auto 5.
Photo Story
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hat sets Rocking the Daisies apart from other festivals is its promise to protect the environment in which it is held. Cloof Wine Estate is situated in Darling, Western Cape and is a working vineyard. From 3-6 October it is transformed into a massive campsite brimming with people, music, food and litter. People chose to simply drop their rubbish less than a metre away from an available rubbish bin. Bins were allocated for recycling and general waste, but it only required a few extra seconds of thought to distinguish where your rubbish needed to go. This is surely a sign that this eco-friendly festival had not so eco-friendly festival goers. The festival provided smokers with portable ashtrays, encouraged festival-goers to hand in their rubbish in return for free stuff and also gave out free beers for every five cans returned to them. But it seems that most of the recycling and environmental initiatives are taken up by festival sponsors and a very efficient cleaning team which has to clear through a minefield of bottles, cups, cigarette butts and the like before anyone wakes up. Environmental projects like Walking the Daisies and Cycling the Daisies were well supported and decorations for the festival were made from recycled materials, but the positive effect of these and other projects seemed to be negated by the sheer volume of discarded waste at the end of the festival.
2 3
Photo Story
15 October 2013
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Photo 1: Large hand decorations were constructed from wooden planks. Photo 2: Pick n Pay provided water stations where people could access water as no bottled water was sold at the festival. Photo 3: Rubbish bins were located close to stages to enable people to recycle their litter. Photo 4: Recycled decorations for the festival included plastic Coca-Cola crates and LED lights. Photo 5: Glass restrictions meant more rubbish was seen outside the entrance. Photo 6: Cars are parked amongst daisies and festival-goers were encouraged to fill their cars to be environmentally conscious. Photo 7: Clean-up teams were seen around stage areas after the last acts had finished before the new line-up resumed. Photo 8: The World Wide Fund had a stand where people could sign up to the organisation and make bracelets to support the initiative.
Photos: GABRIELLA FREGONA
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Despite the atrocities they have seen they display amazing resilience and humanity
- Amaal Salie
The old and new Oppidan Press teams gathered for speeches at the 2013 AGM. Photo: ALEXA SEDGWICK
Outgoing Chief Designer Chevawn Blum accepts her award from the team. Photo: ALEXA SEDGWICK
15
By Douglas Smith series of managerial blunders by Rhodes Sports Administration have resulted in chaos within the Rhodes Internal Soccer League. Referees have still not received payment for their work during the season which came to an end last term. Director of Referees for the league Taurai Kativu said that problems were created by a new referee management system that was implemented this year. In the past, Sports Admin would pay referees R50 in cash for each match they had refereed, making a collective payment at month end. The new system requires Sports Admin to go through the salaries department before paying referees. This means that referees must fill out paperwork recording their work for the league and submit it within the first week of each month. Sports Officer Sanel Sobahle said, Preferably we would like to pay through monthly, but its a Rhodes procedure. Late submission can result in a months delay to the entire process. Even now, at least five of the referees
Referees of the Internal Soccer League have still not been paid as a result of managerial blunders by the Rhodes Sports Administration. Photo: KELLAN BOTHA
have not submitted their paperwork and cannot be paid, Kativu said. This was the reason for referees not being paid last semester. However, this semester there was confusion as to how much referees were to be paid per match, which caused further delay. Initially the payment was agreed at R50. The head of refereeing then tried to tell us that the amount had been lowered to R30 per game, after we had finished refereeing. Obviously we all complained, said Paul Burgess, who refereed 10 games this season. Sobahle said that there had simply been a misunderstanding and that as soon as this was realised the amount was readjusted to R50 per match However, Sports Admin had already adjusted all of the paperwork to reflect the new payment of R30. This meant that they had to redo the paperwork for each referee to ensure that the salaries department did not reject the incorrect figures. Kativu was assured that referees would be paid in September, once this issue had been dealt with. This deadline was missed, however, and the new official payment date is 25 October with many referees hoping that this will be honoured.
The delayed payment of referees negatively impacted the league. Referees began to miss fixtures and in some cases spectators were called upon as volunteer referees. I try to make it a point to confirm with referees on the day to make sure that they are available, said Kativu, but without payment they have no motivation to be consistent. I literally cross my fingers every league night. Kativu had to referee matches himself at the last minute on several occasions. He hasnt been paid a cent yet. It is fair and square for us to blame the system, but then what are we doing about it? he said. Sobahle said that Sports Admin has appointed a single league coordinator for next year in order to avoid communication breakdowns. The newly announced league coordinator for 2014, Kudzai Nzombe will have a big responsibility on his shoulders. Sports Admin have also decided that more external, qualified referees will be appointed next year. Each game will be controlled by three referees, two external and one internal. This means that the league will have legitimate linesmen for the first time to ensure legitimacy.
Sports
By Brandon Yates hodes Sport has suffered a great deal in the past few years due to a lack of investment from the university. Many teams have struggled due to financial constraints, but more have thrived despite this. Rhodes Sport has to compete with academic projects for funding. This year we are still operating with last years budget allocation, said Head of Sports Administration Mandla Gagayi. Rhodes rugby has been greatly affected by this issue. Despite continued support from passionate fans, a lack of funding from the university has resulted in rugby teams being forced to play under sub-standard floodlights on poorly managed fields. The Rhodes Rugby Club does not even own a functioning scrummachine, a tool which is vital for match preparation. Scrum-machines, proper field maintenance and quality floodlights are very expensive, explained Gagayi. New floodlights would cost R3.2 million alone. In spite of the funding problems, many of Rhodes sporting sides perform incredibly well on a national scale. Member of the Rhodes Rowing Club Jonas Vijverberg elaborated, We compete against the top universities
Sporting facilities at Rhodes are slowly decaying due to a lack of investment in their upkeep. PHOTO: KELLAN BOTHA in the country on a regular basis. At a recent [SASSU] competition we placed second, with the University of Cape Town winning in the end. The club also performed well at the 2013 Boatrace Championship, in which they won the Best Novice Crew title and the staff team won their race against the University of Johannesburg staff crew. The Rhodes First Mens Hockey side has also been extraordinarily successful this year. They have been promoted to compete in the Varsity Cup next year after a highly successful tour to Cape Town in July. While funding has always been an issue for our club, our team runs smoothly and is well organised, said the teams goalkeeper Wayde Guedes. The achievements of both these teams are extraordinary for a relatively small university with financial strains in the sports department. The commitment shown by the teams, as well as the results they produce, is proof that Rhodes University possesses athletes