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Students demand safety on NMU campuses after horror attack on two women


The Nelson Mandela University Student Representative Council has demanded that university management ensures the safety of students.

This, after a 25-year-old female student was raped and another stabbed inside a computer laboratory at NMU's Second Avenue Campus on Monday night.

SRC Treasurer, Babalwa Vena, said these sort of incidents happen every year during exam period - however nothing is being done.

"Every time when it is exam time at the Nelson Mandela University such cases happen, whether you are a female or a male you are not safe. Students who reside at the Omega students accommodation they study here until 3am and they walk back to campus. Every year there are incidents like this that continue happening but there's no improvement in terms of the security of the institution," she said.

Vena said it is frustrating that there are cameras on campus, but nobody to monitor them. "Are the cameras there for evidence-to say this is what happened? Are they not there to say this is what is about to happen or this is what's happening?,"she added.

Meanwhile, the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality said it would work with the Nelson Mandela University and the South African Police Service to ensure that another violent attack does not take place a university campus.

Executive Mayor, Athol Trollip, said it is troubling that a university campus is not a place of safety for students who want to learn and express themselves.

"We as a city are going to do everything we can in conjunction with the university as well the safety and security department, and the South African Police Services to ensure that this does not happen again. We also appeal to everyone in the city to pray for the fact that our city seems to be gripped in a wave of crime that only we as the people of the city can rid it of," he said.

Trollip has also written to Police Minister, Fikile Mbalula, calling on him to intervene in the fight against crime in Nelson Mandela Bay.

The mayor said that some six weeks have passed since receipt was acknowledged, but yet no response had been forthcoming.

"We have too many citizens per police member, the ratios are skewed in the city and there is land that has been allocated for the building of a new police station. When you build a new police station you send so many resources, we need more human resources, we need more vehicles and more people on patrol. We need visible policing to prevent crime," Trollip said.

Port Elizabeth police are still searching for the suspect.