NSFAS
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) CEO, Andile Nongogo has been fired.
This was announced on Tuesday morning during a briefing on the Standing Committee on Public Accounts.
Nongogo, who was suspended in September, is implicated in a payment scandal for which he has now been axed.
In a briefing last week, it was revealed that an investigation by Werkmans Attorneys found that Nongogo, had handpicked four firms to pay around 1.1 million students their R1 650 monthly allowances directly and not through tertiary institutions, which had been the previous payment method.
The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) was also at the briefing and noted a number of flaws in the NSFAS system, greatly affecting mostly students.
The SIU presented their findings to the Committee on Tuesday, highlighting the system's inability to detect whether a student qualifies for the funding scheme, employees being able to access the system and change recipients' particulars, especially banking details and cellphone numbers.
The SIU's investigation also showed that recipients and service providers were not vetted by the scheme.
This means that the system is not able to vet the students, their home addresses or incomes.
Landlords offering student accommodation were also not vetted.
The funding scheme has been facing challenges related to its direct payment systems, delays in resolving appeals and the accreditation of accommodation.
Students from across the country have embarked on many protest actions, some of which have become violent, after not receiving allowances.
The presentation also revealed that there are 12 institutions on the Eastern Cape that owe NSFAS about R418 million, and more across the country.
The SIU has also advised institutions that owe NSFAS money, to sign an agreement of debt and repay the money in monthly instalments.
