DURBAN:THE frozen bank accounts of Duduzane Zuma are hindering his vision to contribute towards helping students facing financial exclusion at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN).
The son of former president Jacob Zuma trended on social media after he visited five of the troubled university’s campuses on Friday.
He was honouring a promise he made a week ago after he urged students to refrain from burning and destroying university property.
He said he wanted to get it from the “horse’s mouth” the plight of students who went on a rampage destroying university property with unrest continuing since the beginning of the academic year.
Chauffeured in a convoy of luxurious cars, including two Range Rovers and a BMW, Zuma was warmly welcomed in Pietermaritzburg, Howard College, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine and Westville campuses under heavy security.
More than 4000 students were facing historic debts, the repayment of which were believed to be at the centre of the violent protest.
Speaking to the Sunday Tribune while touring the campuses, Zuma said he would love to contribute financially, but he had his own issues with financial institutions.
“It is not a secret I had my trials and tribulation, my bank accounts are still closed.
“People have tried to take that angle to ask if this money comes, where it comes from?
“So I don’t want to get into how much is coming from whose pockets, as long as students get assisted, I will be happy.
“I also don’t like the question of how much I have contributed, that is a wrong approach. The focus that should be taken is student assistance,” said Zuma.
In 2017, Zuma confirmed in an open letter that all his bank accounts had been closed due to his association with the Gupta family. It is understood he had shares in some of the Gupta-linked companies who have since left the country.
While on the visit he urged students to refrain from burning and destroying infrastructure.
He remained mum about his political ambition, saying he was offering help, not as a leader but an active citizen.
Quizzed about his political ambitions, Zuma retaliated by asking a journalist if he has a political party.
“Do you have a political party? If not, maybe you can start one, I will join and we will do it together,” he responded sarcastically.
Although he was flanked by the leadership of SA Students’ Congress, the ANC-aligned student body, Zuma maintained he was there to give hope to the “forgotten majority”.
He said it was a sad reality that more than 4000 students from UKZN faced financial exclusion.
“We know many are coming from far, but I don’t want them to lose hope. We are going to do what needs to be done to get this message to the leadership.
“There are issues, the reason I am here is to understand for myself what those issues are,” he said.
He spared a moment to discuss their core issues while taking selfies.
He told students that the government needs to be allowed to get all systems correct, adding that 26 years into democracy was not long enough to fix all the country’s problems.
He encouraged the private sector to come on board.
“We cannot place the onus on the government alone, clearly they have been disappointing some people. They have also done a great job but in some areas, they have not done enough.
“These things take time.
“The free education policy was adopted in 2017 but it has not been fully implemented. As a concerned citizen we cannot just sit back and wait for the government, that is a mistake. We are grateful for their contribution but there is more we can do. We need to plough back to the students,” he said.