The DA welcomes the public protector’s investigation into the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) direct payment contracts awarded to four services providers that do not have the required financial licenses.
Stellenbosch SRC Vice Chairperson and DASO member, William Sezoe, lodged the complaint after Coinvest, Tenet Technology, Ezaga Holdings and Norraco Corporation won the tender for the NSFAS Mastercard that will allow students direct access to their funds, provided they have accounts with one of these service providers.
There have already been a number of complaints about the system, including students not receiving their funds, glitches, and unauthorised access resulting in loss of funds. The DA and other stakeholders have also raised questions regarding the exorbitant fees the service providers charge students – most of whom are already vulnerable.
Should the public protector find any shred of evidence of tender fraud, we expect swift and decisive consequence management.
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