the oppidan press edition 10, 2013 (investec rhodes top 10)

7/27/2019 The Oppidan Press Edition 10, 2013 (Investec Rhodes Top 10)

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The Oppidan PressEdition 10, 15 October 2013

Reeree paymentdebacle

Cosmo: ailingearless emales

Page 15Page 9

THE

TOP100

EDITIO

N

hoto: GABRIELLA FREGONA

Rubbishing the daisies 12

What water meansor voting in 2014

Page 3


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News FeaturesTe Oppidan Press 15 October 2013

Donkeys trot or treatment

mma Atkinson and Bulelwa Mthombothi

des campus remains one o the most accessible to

urrounding area in the country, with students and

hamstown residents being able to cross over without

itoring or interrogation o any kind. However recent crimes

le Rhodes students concerned about their security and the

ty o their property.ccording to the Campus Protection Unit (CPU) the is thet common crime on campus. Tis ranges rom petty thieverysidences to car break-ins. On 9 September, three cars in the

n Grove parking lot were broken into and valuables were taken.ther was broken into in August through central-locking signal

mers. While warnings and advice have been posted on the

StudentZone page, the increase in vehicle-related burglary contin-ues unabated.

Te University currently uses CPU and Hi-ec Security guardsto patrol campus. Tese operate on a shi system and it wasduring a change in shis that student Jessica Steyns car was brokeninto. She arrived to nd her passenger window smashed in and thepossessions in her car were taken, including her laptop, notes and

books.Te CPU were the rst people I contacted as the break-inhappened on campus, said Steyn.

Aer contacting CPU, Steyn dialled the 10111 emergency line15 times beore anyone answered. Te police arrived on the scenethree hours aer the phone call at 1am, during which time CPUstayed with Steyn while she waited.

According to Steyn, CPU were more ecient than the police.CPU told me that the person who broke into my car isprobably one o the ex-convicts living in the Botanical Gardens,she explained.

CPU representatives stated that the responsibility to preventcrime also lies with students, who must reduce or remove theopportunity or potential criminal activity. Security tips are presenton their page and they reiterated them to Te Oppidan Press:

Never leave items on display, like jackets and valuables. Invest incar gear-locks or steering wheel locks and anti-the wheel-nuts.

Dean o Students Dr Vivian de Klerk, while reraining romcommenting on the recent thes and break-ins, has also suggestedmeasures in the past or students to protect their cars and property.When addressing the problem o central-locking jammers, she said,When locking your vehicle using a central-locking device, dont

walk away while you are doing so but double-check that your caris actually locked by physically trying to open the door and boot.De Klerk emphasised caution, as many insurance companies rejectinsurance claims or stolen items in such cases.

Whether the increase in thes and break-ins is connected tothe relative openness o Rhodes campus is unclear. Te questionshould be considered in light o the argument that universitiesshould be open to surrounding communities so they too canbenet rom their resources. An open campus can also allow orgreater sharing o ideas in the university space. Te intersectiono the university and the world outside has been o particularinterest to the university. I there is to be an electric shock, it willcome out o that engagement, said Richard Pithouse, lecturer inthe Politics Department.

Easy access to campus a risk to student saety

Leila Stein

Donkey carts are a central

eature on Grahamstowns

streets. On 28 September

ahamstowns annual Donkey

rade took place with the support

d involvement o various local

GOs and businesses.

Local donkeys and their ownersaded through town, ending atAlbany Sports Club where a car-al was held. Prizes or best cart

d harness as well as best donkeysre also presented.Tey [the participants] all want tothe best and win rst prize, saidgan Hope, Manager o the Eastern

pe Horse Care Unit (ECHCU)ich assisted the Makana Donkeyociation (MDA) with the event.

Te event was organised by MDA,by Sheri Annerie Wolmarans.

ch cart was sponsored by localinesses or R300 per cart, with theiness name appearing on theirnsored cart.

We sponsor every year, saidnchisee o Wimpy Suzette Walcott.nnerie comes in and asks us or thensorship and were happy to help.

Te parade is part o a biggergramme which seeks to help don-owners to care or their animals.

nkey Clinics, a combined eort o

HCU and MDA, are held roughlyry month in the Joza ownship.

According to Hope, many o thecart-owners, or carties as they areknown, take such pride in theirdonkeys and carts that, they invitethem [other carties] to the clinics or,i they resist, actually take us to theirhouses so that their issues can beaddressed.

At the clinics the cart owners are

taught how to properly treat woundssuch as abscesses. However, care isnt

only provided at the clinics. I thereis anything in the meantime thatrequires more drastic care, the cartowners all know how to nd Annerieand she liaises with me about what isrequired to be done, said Hope.

All this assistance is necessary asthe donkey cart owners have neverhad the opportunity to have proper

carting training. Tis education driveis also incorporated into the Donkey

Parade day as the cart owners have theopportunity to speak to the memberso ECHCU about their needs.

Along with the collaboration othese two NGOs, the SPCA is alsoinvolved in helping to look aerdonkeys specically those who get lostor are brought in because they needspecial care.

Although they do not collaboratewith ECHCU and MDA, the animal

welare society at Rhodes ROAR,

supports some o the other localNGOs and their programmes.ROAR has recently set up its owndonkey clinic in conjunction with theFarm Animal Centre or Education(F.A.C.E).

We treat donkeys and dogs andprovide the community with tipson how to care or their animalsproperly, said Chairperson o ROARGemma Barkhuizen.

It is very sensitive work theanimals can be badly wounded andthe community aces incommunicablehardship, she added. Tis projectis currently only open to ROARcommittee members but they hope to

expand it to all students once it hasbeen ully established.

F.A.C.E., however, seems unableto begin collaborations with ECHCUand MDA. Despite working closely

with the SPCA inspectors and havingboth a trained animal behaviouristand veterinarian, their help has beenoverlooked by the other organisationsin Grahamstown.

We have oered to work withECHCU and MDA in the past butwe havent received any response, wewould love to work with them, saidChairperson o F.A.C.E JennyCopley-Forster. Tere is enough workor ten animal clinics and so we would

really like to see the organisationsworking together, she added.

The Annual Donkey Parade creates awareness about the care o donkeys in Grahamstown. Photo: JOSHUA OATES


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News Features15 October 2013 Te Oppidan Press 3

Transormation at Rhodes awedMitchell Shaun Parker

tics

n light o the recent resignation

o Advocate shidi Hashatse as

the Director o Equity and Insti-

onal Culture, red ags have been

ed over the state o transorma-

at Rhodes University and how

ctive some o its policies are.

n a report submitted prior to hergnation Hashatse made the com-t that, In order or equity andsormation related objectives to besed, there needs to be a model or

ernance and implementation thaters some level o responsibility anduntability.

mportantly, as stated in her

ort, Rhodes University only begantuting employment equity policies010. Tis raises questions omitment to the implementation

hese kinds o transormational

atives and addressing whathatse calls sta prole andesentation challenges. Tis also

brings distinct problems in terms o

legislative compliance to light.

Politics Lecturer Dr Sally Matthews,who has done research into Institu-tional Culture, oered an explana-tion as to why policy alone is not thesolution. What it seems, and this isnot just at Rhodes, is that theyve gottheir policies and their procedures, butinstitutional culture cant be achievedwith policy. We need other tech-niques, said Matthews.

Using the example o a black aca-demic potentially not eeling comort-able at Rhodes, Matthews noted that itis not always that clear what needs tobe changed.

Oen it is not a direct expressiono discrimination, but rather a general

eeling o not being welcome..People put in policies and proce-

dures so that i you ace explicit racismor explicit sexism, there are proceduresthat are appropriate that you can ol-

low through there. But, actually, mosto the time people arent acing that,said Matthews. She also believed that

side-lining is not necessarily some-

thing that can be easily rectied or

even measured.Furthermore, the issue is not only

that there is no policy, or even that thepolicy is being ignored, but that thereis a Rhodes culture o independence.Matthews is o the view that an intol-erance o intererence into internalaairs is what makes it so dicult toimplement any eective change atRhodes University.

I you are going to transorm some-thing, thats going to mean the peoplewho are going to be in charge otransormation are going to have to begiven the power to meddle and i theyare not, they are in a dicult position.I there arent any accountability struc-

tures, then you arent going to be ableto do that, Matthews pointed out.

However, it is not only race that isimportant within the Rhodes context.Class should play a huge role in the

thinking that goes on behind transor-mation too. Yet looking at the reportproduced by Hashatse this is not

something that is really noted.

What is striking about Rhodes is

just how middle-class it is and we haveto be careul not to pat ourselves onthe back or transorming in terms obecoming less white i we dontrecognise that it is not enough i someblack students eel comortable,continued Matthews.

Outgoing Activism and ransorma-tion Councillor Mbongeni Ngwenyaagreed with this sentiment. We havetransormed racially: more black peo-ple have access to Rhodes. Class is alsoa concern though, with black middle-class people having greater access thanpoor black people because they lackresources, he said.

Tere has been a vast change rom a

racial perspective in the demographicso Rhodes over the last twenty years.Now, roughly 48% o students areblack, compared to the 37% in 2006,according to a study done by Hashatse.

Tere is still room or improvement,however, when it comes to areas oclass, gender and sexual orientation.

In Matthews view, this raises an

interesting trade-o. In order to create

comort or some, it is possible thatothers will be orced into discomort.Even more importantly, who gets todecide who is discomorted and inwhat ways they will be discomorted?

A white male academic, or example,would disempower his own positionby the very act o engaging withdiversity programmes, and this couldbe a reason as to why transormationhas been unsuccessul at white-male-dominated Rhodes. Troughtransormation, he would, even i hesupported it, be less empowered thanhe was beore.

Without enorcement and monitor-ing, transormation is something that

will, in many cases, not be promoted.Matthews said, Rhodes is very touchyabout managerialism but we also haveto not conuse the issues. Tere is badmanagerialism, but transormation is

also something that has to be drivenand you cant just leave alone thosewho dont want to get involved.

Will the water crisis inuencestudent voters in 2014?By Leila Stein

Politics

Te 2014 national elections are

just around the corner and with

the current water issues aect-

ing Rhodes University students

so prooundly, it remains to be

seen whether or not they will use

the opportunity to vote in a new

political body.

My sincere hope would be that

the recent water crisis would makeany thinking young adult realisethat they need to use their voicein the orthcoming election andthat they would be enthusiastic toregister as a voter and express theirviews, as is their democratic right,stated Dean o Students Dr VivianDe Klerk.

Tis is currently only a vaguepossibility however, as voterregistration or the Rhodes ward islow and the Independent ElectoralCommission (IEC) has alreadycome to Rhodes earlier this year toregister students.

What we must understand is

that it [people not voting] is notunique to this campus, said SRCLiaison Ocer Eric Oei. It is anational problem. I you look atvoter turnout, the older generationsturnout is around 70 percent andthe younger generations turnoutlies in the 30s.

A study done by the Human

Sciences Research Council in 2011ound that 58 percent o par-ticipants in the study between theages o 16-24 were either not veryinterested or not at all interested inpolitics.

Tis extends to the political or-

ganisations on campus. Te Demo-cratic Alliance Students Organisa-tion (DASO) has only 32 members.Chairperson o DASO ChelseyWilkin commented that, At Rho-

des University, there is a culture ode-politicisation which is inerredin everyday conversations such aswe should be grateul our SRC isapolitical and in reerences tothe chaos at other universitiessuch as Walter Sisulu University[where crises are explained withreerence to] the ineectivenesso politics.

Although the current presenceo DASO is virtually non-existenton campus, Helen Zille has made itclear that the DA would step up tox the crisis in Grahamstown. Sheresponded to a tweet sent to herposing the question: Can the DA

x the water problem in Graham-stown? by stating Yes, i we areelected to government. People getthe government they vote or.

Te DA has outlined plans thatthey would choose to implement ithey were to manage the Makanamunicipality. Tese include ideassuch as upgrading old pumps,

building a reservoir higher up toensure water can reach the higherregions and introducing rainwaterharvesting by-laws.

Whether students will takeadvantage o their ability to aecta change remains to be seen. I

think we need to nd relevance inthe things that go on around us,commented Oei. Obama used theyouth platorm in his campaign,things such as Facebook and wit-

ter.Although South Arican politi-

cians have tried to make use o newmedia through witter accountsand Facebook pages, it appearsthat it has not had the same eectas the Obama campaign. In whathas been dubbed a slightly mis-guided attempt by the IEC to enticeyouth voters, the youth act sheetis an exact replica o its adultcounterpart but with a more crea-tive typeace and pictures o youngpeople. It is clear that the intentionto engage a younger audience isthere but it appears that the execu-tion is somewhat lacking.

In spite o poor youth outreachin politics, Oei commented thatpeople have been asking when andwhere they can register. Te IECwill probably come back to registerstudents again next year, said Oei.In the meantime you can registerat the local IEC oce in Grahams-town at 20 High Street.

An ANC voting poster is used to make a

school sign in Manley Flats.

Photo: GABRIELLA FREGONA


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In 2006, only 27% o students in SA graduatedwithin the regulation three years

28%more graduatesthan the currentcurriculum

The exible programme would produce

In 2000-2010 studentenrolment grew by

52%While FTE academicsta stood at

21%The exible programme will thereore

be required to improve stang levels

R716 MillionThe amount to which the total averageannual additional subsidy will increasewhich is 16%more than theamount in the current curriculum

In terms o the additional years (1 to 2

years longer) taken by students currently:

44%graduate in theGeneral Bachelor

Degree

53% graduate in theDiploma Degree

35%graduate in Proes-

sional Bachelors

Degree

The ull-time equivalent (FTE) academic sta is currently 10 288 and with the

exible programme it will increaseto11 687

The staf cost will thereore increase rom

R4 775 billiontoR5 464 billion

34%-36% o students rom Rhodes

compared to

Proposals to extend undergrad degree

New courses will be developed

but the existing courses will also

be improved.

The amount o students that will

be successul enough to graduate

is likely to increase drastically

rom what it has been in the past.

The students who would havenever been able to graduate in

the current structure but have

the potential to will have the

opportunity to do so.

When students ail courses,

their degree curriculum loses

coherence - they literally start

to search or credits all over

the place. The proposal aims at

preventing this.

Not all the problems which may

cause ailure will be addressed

by the implementation o the

new programme.

There will be a separation

amongst students who can excel

in three years and those who

take the longer route o our

years.

It will require a lot o work or

the University as a whole as they

prepare or the implementation

o the new programme.

Huge amounts o unding

will be administered by the

Government which has been

known to be unreliable in the

past.Positives

Negatives

mily Corke

Rhodes University has recently

been involved in discus-sions around the Council o

her Educations (CHE) proposal,

ch is set to accommodate the low

o students who graduate rom

ersity within three years. Ac-

ing to Rhodes Universitys Dean

eaching and Learning Proessor

issie Boughey, the proposal is to

nd the time taken to complete

ndergraduate qualication rom

e to our years.

Te report is now available oric comment and once responsesbeen received rom universities

students, the CHE will decidether or not to put a proposal to the

ister o Education. Te earliest thewould be implemented would be/18.

Tese discussions arose out oies looking at how students are

gher education. Te outcomes oe studies reveal a worrying situ-n: in 2006 only 27% o studentsuated within three years.t Rhodes the gure is only slightlyer, with 34-36% o students gradu-g within three years. Te studiesshow that 40% o those who docomplete their undergraduateee in three years completely leave

Higher Education system.Clearly this situation cannot go

said Boughey, who led the grouph developed the extended ourBachelor o Social Science degreeat Rhodes.

Te report o the CHE task teames that a careully constructed cur-um spanning our years will allowe students to graduate.ccording to Boughey, a our yeariculum at Rhodes would allowe to include a common coursell students on issues related to

al justice. Te discussion aroundCommon Course at Rhodes hasnly centred on an idea similare Cemus initiative developed atsala University [Sweden], said

ell Scarr, a student who has beenlved in the discussions arounda course.

Te aim is to create the condi-s or people to rediscover their

adventurous and sensitive sides whichare so oen lost in school.

Scarr conrmed that the discussions

are still only in the early stages andthat those involved in the talks onlyhave a broad idea o what the Com-mon Course could entail.

Director o the Allan Gray Centreor Leadership Ethics Proessor Pedroabensky has also been involved indiscussions around the CommonCourse. He said that he is ullysupportive o the proposal beingimplemented at Rhodes.

Tere are other concerns relatingto the implementation o a our yeardegree. Te additional year impliesextra costs a concern in a countrywhere many students cannot aord

higher education as it is. Bougheysuggested, however, that in practice theadditional ourth year would not addany extra costs due to the high numbero students who take our years tocomplete their degrees anyway.

Te dierence will be that somestudents will have to ace the act thatthey are going to have to take ouryears upront at the beginning otheir time at university rather thansimply adapting to that act once they

begin to ail, said Boughey.Boughey added that, ideally, unding

organisations like the National StudentFinancial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) oSouth Arica and student loans are

going to have to take into account thatstudents are going to take our years tocomplete their degree and actor thatinto what they oer students.

Tere is the additional concern that

the extension o the undergraduatedegree will result in students

spending one more year without any

work experience, while those whohave graduated in three years will havestarted working already.

Boughey argued that this could becircumvented by students who take theast track. Critical to the CHE askeams argument is that any studentwho can complete [their degree]in three years should be allowed tocomplete in that time. In other words,they should be ast tracked throughthe system. Tis would mean that the36 percent o Rhodes students who docomplete their degree in three yearscan continue to do so.

How best to implement such ascheme is still up or discussion.Te

idea is to decide who could be asttracked either on admission (based onmatriculation scores or on peror-mance in the National Benchmarkests) or to move people onto a ast

track in the rst term o their rst yearbased on test and assignment results.

Te proposal allows students andparents to come to terms with the po-tential diculties o university beorethey ail. Te fexible curriculum willaddress the problem o students beingunderprepared, which Boughey arguesis too common in South Arica.

According to Boughey, it has longbeen acknowledged that students whoare underprepared or tertiary study

need more time and more tuition ithey are to complete their degrees. Teour-year proposal aims to bringstudents into the courses without let-ting them ail. Boughey insisted thatthe proposal is only dealing with thestatus quo it is addressing what isactually happening already.

As or the prevailing attitude thatstudents who do not complete theirdegree in three years at Rhodes drinktoo much and party too hard, Boughey

argued that there are even more stu-dents who do not party too much andstill ail.

Te proposed change will notaddress the problem o students

who seem determined not to do anywork whatever the conditions, saidBoughey. However, it has the poten-tial to help those who start to ail orother reasons.

The report o

the CHE task

team argues

that a careully

constructedcurriculum

spanning our

years will allow

more students

to graduate.- Dean of Teaching and Learning

Professor Chrissie Boughey


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aculties respond positivelyo proposed change

A course to oster ideaso intellectual courage

How afordable is the

exible programme?

$y Mila Kakaza

Te implementation o the exible curriculum programmell aect the unctioning o aculties within Rhodes Uni-

rsity. Te proposed change is highly supported since the

ajority o students leave university without graduating.

Te problem in South Arica is that very ew studentsaduate within three years, said Proessor om Martin, Headthe Philosophy Department. Dean o Science Proessorc Bernard echoed Martin and stated that at least 33% o

udents in the science aculty do not get their degree.Te leap rom secondary to tertiary education seems to be ate core o poor perormance. Students do not complete their

ndergraduate degrees in three years due to poor preparationthe so-called gap between secondary and tertiary education,id Dean o Commerce Proessor Dave Sewry. Te fexibleogramme will place students in either three- or our-year

ndergraduate degree courses.Te biggest task will be selecting who will be in the

celerated programme, noted Bernard.Bernard supported Rhodes our-year Extended Studiesogramme as it has produced many successul graduates.artin agreed that it is important to understand that the

untry will also be producing more graduates with theoposed change. Tere are various reasons as to why students

o not complete their degrees in three years.Te biggest disadvantage is that the fexible programmell not solve all problems not every student who takes ourve years to complete an undergraduate degree does socause o poor schooling or the articulation gap, Sewry said.As the aculty we have to think o what is needed to be doneth the extra time, said Martin. Te fexible programmell depend upon the amount o work in its implementation.evertheless, it will be serving the citizens o South Aricaho are a big part o this change.

By Mila Kakaza

Te implementation o the Common Course, which has so arbeen received positively, will mostly aect students. Te C om-

mon Course is essentially going to give students an opportunity

to try something outside their comort zone.

Adrian Romeo, who has been involved in the existential con-versations hosted by the Allan Gray Centre or Leadership Ethics,speaks about how the Common Course will allow individuals achance to grapple with important ideas. Te Common Courseshould be a guideline which will help students be more than juststudents, Romeo said.

Te issues raised in these conversations around the CommonCourse are based on the question o whether the Universityis allowing students to become more than just students o theinstitution. Romeo argued that there is no noticeable greatercommunity in the social lie o students. Tere is no sharingo ideas and no building o a community within Rhodes. We arebasically tted into the mould o a student, Romeo said.

Romeo believes that the Common Course will also allowstudents to understand their place in Grahamstown and to notseparate themselves rom the town. I think the implementationo the Common Course will help in ostering ideas o intellectual

courage, Romeo explained.

By Mila Kakaza

Te unding o the proposed exible programme is animportant point that needs to be made transparent in

order to prove its easibility to the public. Te most

important perspective may be that o the state, as the

change will have a big impact in terms o subsidies and

NSFAS contributions.

A comparison between the status quo o tertiary cur-ricula and the proposed fexible programme showed thator a general Bachelors Degree the amount would shirom a total cost o R147 267 to R131 156 per graduate.

For a our year degree the amount would shi rom atotal cost o R225 656 to R206 337 per graduate. Diplo-mas would also decrease rom R177 090 to R161 707 pergraduate.

Te unds or the fexible programme will be sourcedrom various grant schemes. In order or the new cur-riculum to be introduced, the eaching Development

Grant which allocated R576 million or the 2013/14nancial year could possibly help with sta develop-ment and a re-structuring o the curriculum.

Te Department o Higher Education and raining

oundation grant scheme would possibly be removed asthere might be no need or extended curriculum pro-grammes should the change be made.

Although some students may be o the opinion that anadditional year o university ees would be an extra nan-cial burden, the reality is actually much less stressul.

Not only are decreases in costs expected across theboard, but the programme is also set to be fexible. Stu-dents may still be able to graduate within three years, butit has also been noted that many students already take atleast one additional year o study anyway.

There is no sharing o ideas and

no building o a community within

Rhodes. We are basically ftted into

the mould o a student.

-Adrian Romeo


6/16


yasha Manyumwa

ness

Rhodes is arguably seen as theheart o the Grahamstown

community with its students

ng as a vital lie-source or local

nesses. With the December vaca-

ast approaching, the question

e again arises: just how impor-

is Rhodes and its students to

hamstowns retail sector? Indeed,

more pressing question is: how

ocal communities react to the

ents absence?

ccording to the 2011 Rhodesst o Statistics, 19 percent o theoximately 7200 students weregn nationals. Te majority oemaining 81 percent resided in

r South Arican provinces. Tet is that the absence o students

es a dent in Grahamstowns buyingulation when they leave the towny December.

ccording to a number o localnessmen, mainstream businessesing rom retail outlets to night-s experience a dramatic slowdownusiness and turnover as theirlar clientle goes on vacation. Itparticularly aects some o the

businesses which have emerged as aresult o the deciencies in municipal-

ity service delivery.

One such business is Oasis, whichhas benetted rom the increaseddemand or bottled water. We expectthis all in sales every December asstudents account or a large number oour sales, thereore business is slowerduring this period naturally, saidOasis employee Zama ambo. Usuallysales recover strongly when the univer-sity re-opens in February.

Some students, however, are localresidents o Grahamstown and theytoo notice the dierence when themajority o the student body leaves.Ntokozo Nguba described the atmos-phere during December as resemblingthat o a ghost town, a view echoed by

other local residents.Tis reduction in expenditure is not

necessarily a bad thing or the town asa whole, however. While liquor storesand pubs may not relish it, not all are

negatively aected by the quiet period.December signals an opportunity orthose households in Grahamstownwhich enjoy the quieter environmentwhen most students are gone to enjoythis time while it lasts. Te Rat andParrot does not only count students

as a customer base but includes localresidents o Grahamstown too and weserve as a gateway or tourists on theirway to neighbouring cities, explainedone o the managers o the R at andParrot, aadzwa Nyakotyo, whenasked about the impact o the holidays.

Nevertheless, the general consensus

is that Rhodes students are missed byGrahamstown businesses. Whetherit is water, liquor or grocery sales,students are a key source o income,stimulating the economy with their

expenditure. While certain localresidents o Grahamstown who eelthe students are loud and disruptivemay enjoy a respite or a ew weeks,ultimately this presents a potentiallydire period or businesses who largelyrely on the students or revenue.

December vac: bad or business, good or locals

Many stores around Grahamstown have a large student client base. Photo:

KELLAN BOTHA

We expect this

all in sales

every Decemberas students

account or a

large number o

our sales.

- Zama Tambo, Oasis employee


7/16


arryn de Kock

tics

onversation about public commemora-

tion came to the ore recently

aer Heritage Day and in light o the

inued construction o the Egazini Memo-

Precinct. South Arica currently has 13

ic holidays and numerous memorial sites,

nusually high number in comparison to

r Arican countries, and it

uestionable whether the meaning o these

been retained.

the memories o historical events are or thison remembered at all, they are partial andcular to the person remembering it, said

oy Owen o the Anthropology Department.n went on to add that the government does

and actually cannot be expected to publically

morialise historical events because it places aonsibility on them to live up to the ideals andes that encapsulate each date such as Youthand Womens Day.

Public holidays also aect productivity. Its

bad or the economy to have so many public holi-

days, said BCom student Neesha Bhana.People take days o to have long weekends or

entire weeks o. April, which usually includesEaster weekend, Family Day, Freedom Day andschool holidays, is notoriously holiday-heavyand work-light.

Tese extra days o, coupled with existingpublic holidays, can lead to over an extra montho time o in a year or any one South Aricanemployee, which is crippling when oneconsiders a South Arican workorce o about14 million people.

Tought must be given to the social as well asthe economic eect o all the memorialising. Teconstruction o the Egazini Memorial in FingoVillage is accompanied by lengthy documenta-tion concerning the implementation, design and

aims o the site.One o these aims includes signicant empha-

sis on shaping the way in which visitors interpretthe meaning o the site. Tis ultimately lends a

subjective nature to the Monument keeping it

rmly in line with the Egazini Precincts vision.

As a matter o broader policy, this means thatplaces such as the South Arican Museum, orexample, exhibit content that is aligned with thenational governments ideas about identity,history and accepted values and leaves outcontent which does not suit its purposes. Whileit is understandable that discriminatory contentwould be held back, it is arguable that thenarratives constructed through public accounts ohistory and what it means to be a South Aricancitizen, are oen at odds with the realities thatmany South Aricans experience daily.

Youth Day, the commemoration o the 1976Soweto student uprisings, is a South Arican holi-day that has received much attention. It is oenaccompanied by documentaries, monuments androadshows, but outside o government eorts to

preserve and communicate its importance thereare ew citizen-led initiatives.

Each person is ultimately responsible orremembering and those memories will be

stitched together in particular ways or particular

ends. Is there ever space to remember as human

beings? asked Owen.As South Arican society progresses rom its

ocial liberation in 1994, the meaning o publicmemorials and holidays will inevitably changewith new generations being educated andinormed about the past. Tis also means that themeaning behind public holidays will change.

On the issue o Heritage Day being unociallyrenamed Braai Day, student Kelly Solomonsaid, Braaiing could be considered part o SouthArican culture, but whose culture and heritageis it originally? On the other hand, is it wrong towant to orget painul memories and ocus onthe present and uture? What Solomon raises issomething that is oen le out o the major retell-ing o South Arican history that those involvedin the liberation struggle suered in many ways.

Constant attempts to reinvoke the past or politi-cal or other means can cause signicant stressto the very people who brought our country towhere it is today.

s memory a weapon weve orgotten?

Ive never committed to public holi-

days at Rhodes because little eort is

made to celebrate them. It makes it

dicult to get involved in anything

there is a huge lack o recognition.

Robert Stuart-Thompson, BSc

blic holidays are not celebrated

what they were created to

memorate.

sha Bhana, BCom

I dont understand how Heritage

Day is Braai Day. Isnt it supposed to

be a celebration o our culture?

Nonhle Skosana, BJourn

Youth Day has all these big estivals

and parties and you hardly fnd the

actual meaning o the date being

commemorated.

Zoe Neocosmos, BA

South Aricans see public holidays as

ree holidays now.

Jabu Simelane, BA

isipho Skweyiya

recent ailures o the Makana

nicipality made headlines whene Blanche screened a segment

ts aults on national television.

ing reported on the launch o the

iSAM initiative in September,

year Te Oppidan Press con-

ed a ollow up on the initiatives

gress to assess its impact on the

nicipalitys communication.

er being hit by dry water tanksnine-hour-long power outages,hamstown residents, includingdes students, are ed up with theres o the municipality and its in-ty to communicate eectively. TeiSAM initiative was aimed at

roving this so that Grahamstown

dents would no longer be le inurch.ccording to municipality spokes-on Mncedisi Boma, MobiSAM has up and running since its launch.accepted the initiative rom

des University and have henceated a person who will administerystem, said Boma.addition to this, the municipality

d that it had trained our stambers as well as community

lopers to have the skills to

eciently manage MobiSAM.Boma said that the only reason whyMobiSAM is seemingly ineectiveis because the number o peopleregistering or the system is notgrowing ast enough.

Te community has and is beingtold on a regular basis aboutMobiSAM and its registering process,said Boma. Radio Grahamstown hasgiven us an hour slot on uesdaysat 11am to talk about the aim oMobiSAM and what the municipalitywants to achieve rom it.

Te municipality has also recruitedcommunity development workersto do door-to-door visits in order tospread enough awareness about Mo-biSAM. We have also been providing

citizens with simplied pamphletsexplaining the registering process,Boma added.

Proessor Hannah Tinyane, romthe Department o Computer Sciencesand co-initiator o the programme,

said that her team has been workingwith the Makana Municipality on adaily basis to get the project running.

We are working with them to sim-pliy a number o internal processes,such as what happens with reports(whether made by phone or onMobiSAM) and how to speed upresponse times, said Tinyane.

She echoed Boma by conrmingthat the soware was stable and hadbeen working since its launch. How-ever, Tinyane admits that it was not

used during the water crisis where itwas needed most.

Unortunately it wasnt used. Teoutage coincided with a large numbero people rom Communications atMakana being away or 10 days at an

event, said Tinyane. She went on tosay that she hopes that it will be usedduring the next outage.

Boma has also acknowledged thatthe system is not working eectivelybecause the ew people who haveregistered have not been using thesystem properly.

I you are a registered member oMobiSAM, you need to lay complaintsabout water, electricity or pipe break-ages. Ten the administrators othe system will respond to the

complaint immediately with therelevant inormation which will assistthe person, or notiy them o how the

municipality will handle the issue athand, he explained.

Despite Bomas assurances that thesystem is up and running, BabalwaMadikwa, one o the trained stamembers or MobiSAM, claimed thatMobiSAM is not in eect yet. Te lasttime we trained was in July or twoweeks, she stated.

Te trained sta were not sureo how the system works and theysaid that they relied on the Universityto show them how it is supposedto work. Tis means that theyhave to wait on Rhodes to naliseeverything.

Boma, on the other hand, was

adamant that there was no such issueand that Rhodes has done their partin terms o assisting the municipalitywith training and starting the system.

Te people who are meant toadminister MobiSAM are trained.All they need to know is the internalsystem, which is basically knowingwho to contact within the municipalitywhen a problem is reported, saidBoma. Nevertheless, the act remainsthat this potentially valuable resourcehas yet to be put to good use.

Municipality taking unseen steps to better communication

The Makana Municipality is wasting away as it relies on a nearly 200-year old inrastructure. Photo: KELLAN BOTHA

What do you think o the way we celebrate public holidays in South Arica today?


8/16

OpinionTe Oppidan Press 15 October 2013

The Oppidan Press contact details

The Oppidan Press

ditor: Binwe Adebayo. Deputy Editor: Kyla Hazell. Managing Editor:

ndisa Menqe. Advertising Managers: Chiedza Guvava and Tinashe

ni . Marketing Manager: Sarah Taylor. Executive Consultant: Kirsten

akin. Online Editor: Stuart Lewis. Assistant Online Editor: Chelseaaith. Multimedia Manager: Charles Mackenzie. News Features Editor:

mily Corke. Assistant News Features Editor: Mila Kakaza. Politics Edi-

or: Tarryn de Kock. Assistant Politics Editor: Mitchell Parker. Opinion

ditor: Ben Rule. Arts & Entertainment Editor: Jessica van Tonder.

ssistant Arts & Entertainment Editor: Jenna Lillie. SciTech Editor:

sitsi Mashingaidze. Business Editor: Nyasha Manyumwa Sports Editor:

ouglas Smith. Chie Photo Editor: Gabriella Fregona. Assistant Chie

hoto Editor: Kellan Botha. Chie Online Photo Editor: Alexa Sedgwick.

hie Sub-Editor: Kaitlin Cunningham. Content Manager: Amanda Xulu.

ub-Editors: Kate Jennings, Danica Kreusch, Jessica Trappe, Amy Wilkes.

hie Designer: Madien van der Merwe. Assistant Chie Designer: Han-

ah McDonald. Advert Designer: Amber-Leigh Davies. Junior Designers:

my Davidson, Alex Maggs. Community Engagement Ofcer: Abigail

utcher.

etters to the Editor: [email protected]

dvertising details: [email protected]

ww.acebook.com/theoppidanpress

ww.twitter.com/oppidanpress

he Oppidan Press publishes letters which are bona fdexpressions o opinion provided that they are not clearly libellous,eamatory, racist or sexist. We publish anonymous letters, buts an act o good aith on your part, we require your ull name.

We reserve the right to shorten letters due to space constraintsnd to edit them or grammatical inaccuracies. Letters that do not

make it into our print edition will be published on our website.

We get services. They get shot.By Ben Rule and Simphiwe Gumede

Asearch or Grahamstown

water crisis gives about 29

000 results on Google. Rho-

des water crisis gets over 270 000

and Rhodes water protest over

EIGH MILLION. Tis is an apt re-ection o the priority with which the

government responded to the issue.

Te South Arican governmenthas a history o responding to service-delivery protests with everything ex-cept services. Although access to wateris a right in this country (see section27 o our Constitution), having waterappears to be a privilege. a privilegeaorded to the privileged.

Tey are privileged because they

have water. It is also starting to looklike they only have water because theyare privileged.

From a position o equality (havinghad the water supply cut out), Rhodes

University had water restored aernine days. Some parts o Grahamstown(areas o Joza, in particular) had waterrestored aer two months. Tis wasonly because o Rhodes Universitysinvolvement, without which supplywould probably have been non-exist-ent or another two months.

Our problem is that governmentapparently responds more quickly tosome segments o its society than oth-ers. Tis can very easily create a cultureo entitlement. Our problem withRhodes is that its behaviour during thewater protest was illustrative o both othese things.

Disclaimer

It is important to understand whatwe are not saying. Tis is not a person-al attack on Dr Badat, Vice-Chancellor.We appreciate his involvement in theprotest. We have a deep respect orhis contribution to Rhodes Universityand indeed his contribution to SouthArica. We would like to thank him orbeing pro-active in the aermath othe protest and through the on-goingwater supply problems experiencedby the campus. We are grateul to theuniversity or organising the protest

and its sta or joining us in solidarity.We also understand that the wearingo academic gowns during protest hasbeen a tradition at Rhodes or a num-ber o decades.

Our Problem

Our main problem is that the way

the protest took place made it look likea Rhodes issue. It is not a Rhodes issue.It is a Grahamstown issue. Rhodes isa part o the broader communitywhich was and still is aected by mu-nicipal incompetence.

Te municipality paid attentionbecause it is Rhodes that raised theissue. Te Presidency paid attention.Parliament paid attention (the Minis-ter o Water and Environmental Aairswas asked a question about Rhodes in

session on 23 August.) Te internetpays attention. Carte Blanche payedattention.

Tis is the problem: by writing anopen letter and walking into town

(some people in gowns) over a lunch-break, Rhodes University gets nationalattention. Te Occupy Grahamstownmovement had to physically throwhuman excrement on to the entranceo the municipality in 2011 to getlimited local attention. Not services.Attention. Te people o eMacambiniin northern KwaZulu-Natal had toblock a highway in 2008 or theirprotest to get close to the attentionRhodes received.

Needless to say, Kwazulu-Natalpolice were soon in attendanceand shots were red. Te Rhodesprotest served as a bitter reminderthat the same problems are treated

dierently by the government andmedia, depending on whose problemsthey are. Tis is similar to the bitterreminder we get every time there is acelebrity adoption that a lot o thewestern media is more concernedabout Madonna or Angelina Jolie thanthey are about the children o Arica.

Our problem with the use oacademic gowns in the protest is thatit clearly and visually distinguishesbetween us - the upper-middle, eco-nomically important class, and them

- the people who are more in need oservices than we are, who have to useshocking or violent tactics simply toget this act heard.

We have gowns. Tey dont. Moreoen than not, we have services. Moreoen than not, they dont. When weprotest, we get services. When theyprotest (the SAME protests), they

get shot.Second-class citizens

A urther emphasis o the divide wasthe phrase in the open letter: We eelwe are being treated like second-classcitizens. Tis we is distinct rom thethem in the previous paragraph theother residents in Makana.

We are being treated in the sameway the government treats its second-class citizens. We eel this because wehave no water. Second-class citizenshave no water. Tey have no water. Youare treating us like you treat them. Wewill not stand or this.So why are weso important? Some o us will go onto make ground-breaking contribu-

tions to our elds o study. Some o uswill shape the direction o business inSouth Arica. Others o us will spendour lives making material dierencesto the communities o this country.And some o us will continue to wasteour parents money, our lecturers timeand our livers capacity to regener-ate themselves. Te act is, we do notdeserve water any more than anybodyelse in this town. Putting on gowns toprotest makes it seem like we thinkwe do.

Well protest

when Badat

is wearing

tekkies and

jeans, holding a

petrol bomb in

one hand and

a knobkerrie in

the other.

he month o October has always held strong political sig-

nicance. On 15 October 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte began

his sel-imposed exile in Britain aer his deeat at Water-

loo and Martin Luther King Jr. received his Nobel Peace Prize inOctober 1964.

Tis years tenth month is no dierent. Te last weeks alonehave seen the eruption o state violence against members o Dur-bans Abahlali baseMjondolo and, on the other side o the politicalspectrum, a recent march by the Red October movement againstrampant white genocide, as it is described by one o the movementsleaders, the ever-controversial Steve Homeyr. Te Oppidan Pressstands in solidarity with Abahlali baseMjondolo and call or a speedyresolution to the confict. Conversely, we think that Red October isa divisive movement that uses uncontexualised acts and terrortactics to play on the discomort o the post-apartheid South Aricanspace.

So what does it mean to have two such opposing ghts happeningsimultaneously? Te actions taken by Durbans police services are notnew, nor are they isolated to the eTekwini branch. Like in the caseo Marikana, the response o the incumbent government to eorts

towards accountability has been to (literally) shoot down those whowould actively resist their marginalised position. Not unlike this,the Red October movement, although fimsy in acts and dangerousin nature, also represents a response to the notion that present-daySouth Arica is a paradise lost.

Tis moment in South Arican politics should hold great gravitas.For a generation which oen complains that we have no struggle,this months political events should convince you otherwise. Like theStudents or Social Justice, who have supported Sbu Zikode and hiscompatriots in Durban, we all have a choice to make. Is it the casethat this will gloss by us, perhaps only eaturing on our Facebooktimeline or witter pages? Or is it possible that, or whichever move-ment you stand, this is the time to make a ull commitment?

At Te Oppidan Press, we are in the business o reporting the newsso that students, sta and residents alike will be equipped with thelargest, most comprehensive body o inormation in order to makeinormed choices. However, our work only has value i and when it

translates into lived reality.Tis editorial marks our last ormal comment or the year. In 2013,

we have shaken o apathy, questioned our leadership and whengoods and services have not been provided, have taken to the streetsto demand a delivery on the promises o our past. Tis is the momentto act, to make our degrees and our newspapers worth the paper onwhich they are printed. So whether you resent the position o thewhite man in present day South Arica or you are moved by thedeath o shack dwellers in Durban, this is the moment to make thatopinion count.

Wearing gowns to the protest made the Grahamstown water crisis look like a Rhodes issue. Photo: JOSHUA OATES


9/16

Opinion15 October 2013 Te Oppidan Press 9

Hayley Zambakides

he popular magazine Cosmo-politan sells itsel as a maga-zine designed or womens

rests. I this is really the case,

is so much o it an instruction

nual or how to please men?

Fun Fearless Female is thean or Cosmopolitan magazine, aazine that is supposed to liber-

women sexually or at least itposes to.owever, it appears that to be a Funless Female is to be a woman whoore concerned about her hair andhes than the current situation ina, to show o as much cleavage ascan while still remaining classy

to know what not to do to your in bed.

osmo seems to advocate that sexualration is really just a synonym orappeal and a clean and tidy ho-

(Cosmos un and earless name orgina). I a womens magazine cantn use the word vagina, how liberat-can it be?n the October 2013 issue, I camess an article titled Six Ways o

ome a Sex Superstar. One may notk this is too terrible, but the rst

line o this article is When it comesto sex, why settle or great when youcan go or mind-blowing? Even betteris when its so mind-blowing that the

lucky man youre with puts you at thetop o his best-ever list.

So even though you may havethought you had a terrible night andrated him in your bottom three i you made it onto his top three thenyou actually had a great night. Andwhats so liberating about FIRS

AKE OFF HIS PANS: Next, reatHim to the Sexy Strokes Hes BeenCraving All AlongBut Wont AskFor (November 2010)? o me, that

doesnt sound too liberating at all.Cosmo seems to be ocused on how

best to do it or your man and nothow to look aer yoursel. Own His

Orgasm (What Men Secretly WantRight Beore Blast O) (November2010) is another example o this.

But wheres the article about howto own your own orgasm? I nd itridiculous that young women are moreworried about how to please theirboyriend (or their one night stand)

than themselves.

Is this to say that sex isnt good

unless you managed to blow his mind?Im not saying that women shouldntsleep with whomever they please,or that they should be completelynonchalant and indierent abouttheir partners needs but their needsshould be just as important at the veryleast, surely?

Te sad reality is that Cosmo tellsyoung women that getting a tightbutt and a fat tummy is or them,without the young women ever ques-tioning why.

A woman is beautiul in all shapesand sizes not just a size 6 with nocurves. Being a Fun Fearless Femalehas got sweet nothing to do with cut-

ting down a dress size, having yourhair look like Beyoncs or learninghow to be a sex goddess.

I think being a Fun Fearless Fe-male is about having un. Worrying

about how you look in the dress thatdoesnt actually t is really not all thatmuch un. Its uncomortable and usu-ally really cold outside.

Perhaps Im wrong. Perhapswomens sexual liberation is reallyabout how to get your guy o. Butprobably not.

Cosmopolitan: serving mens interests

Why an alcohol-ree O-week makes no senseeremy Baxter

ors note: Recently the Board of Residences

ured a proposal to make residences alcohol

during O-Week next year. Jeremy Baxter,

Warden of Lilian Ngoyi Hall, was one of the

to vote against the proposal.

s it stands, the rule prohibits ocial socialtions where alcohol is served during O-Weekthe rst ten days o term, although excep-s may be permitted by the Vice-Chancellor. Iport this rule and believe that it is appropriatehe residence system during this particular

time o the year. Tere is no need or alcohol atO-Week residences or hall unctions.

However, a discussion at the Board o Resi-dences has shown that Rhodes seeks to take thisrule urther: the proposed change would be a ruleagainst all alcohol on campus during that period.I do not support this proposal.

Tere are many strong and very valid argu-ments or a dry O-Week. Te current Rhodesdrinking culture encourages some students totake academic orientation ar rom seriously.

With this in mind, I now turn to why I did notsupport the proposal at the Board o Residences

or dry residences in O-Week.As a Warden, I do not want students scurrying

o to their rooms/town/digs the minute an even-ings ormal residence activity ends.

Tis is what the rule will result in. I do notwant some sort o peer pressure or students toleave their residence as soon as possible to godrink, or more specically binge drink.

I rmly believe that during O-Week, primarilydue to the relatively low ratio o student lead-ers to rst year students, we have a chance tohave an impact or direct social change and mostimportantly to set appropriate boundaries or the

entire year.I you would like to have a beer while watching

the Champions League Football on a Wednesdaynight or rugby on Saturday, Id preer you have itin the common room, not alone in your room.

A residence should be a home to all, includingthose who drink, though I do not think bingedrinking (including excessive pre-drinking)is appropriate.

In essence, I believe that this should be themessage rom day one starting in O-Week.Drinking is easier to control i it takes placewithin residences.

e are questions as to whether enorcing dry res in O-week will help alleviate the drinking culture. PHOTO: JODI VAN VUUR EN

Womens magazines tend to revolve around what women should look like or what they should do to be seen as sexy.

PHOTO: GABRIELLA FREGONA

I a womens

magazine cant even

use the word vagina,

how liberating can

it be?


10/16

OpinionTe Oppidan Press 15 October 2013

By Colin Mkhize and

Lonwabo Nodada

House committees on campus

are always the subject o

much discussion in terms o

their eectiveness or the willingness

o the committee members toactually do their work. Te calibre o

students in these positions is some-

times doubtul, with a lot o people

just applying or House Comm in

order to be able to come back or O-

Week and party.

Aer O-Week, a lot o people onthese committees all under the radarand do not ull their mandate. In themajority o residences on campus, thepeople on House Comm are elected

by their ellow housemates at a housemeeting which could result in apopularity contest. Tis may not bea bad thing, but a lot o the time thepeople elected are not the best t or

the position. Tere is a clear alternativeto an election process and it may betime or campus to start exploring that.

Election

By Lonwabo Nodada

I have been in residence or ouryears now and the one thing thatI have grown to have a love/haterelationship with is the House Commelection process.

Nominating people or HouseComm and listening to their (some-times) passionate and inspiredspeeches was un in rst year. I became

indierent in second year, it was toler-able in third year and now it is just atedious and visibly fawed process.

My issue with the process o votingin House Comm is how unbelievablyrivolous it seems. Friends elect riendswith little to no experience or the

applied position. How, I ask you withtears in my eyes, is a rst-year studentmajoring in Drama and Philosophysupposed to be a reasurer?

More importantly, why on earthdo people vote or them? It couldntpossibly have anything to do withthe brownies and chocolates she gaveaway during her motivation speech,could it? Te people expecting her tohandle their nances couldnt be thatirresponsible, could they?

Well, they could. And they usuallyare. Te mentality is oen yes, the oth-er girl had incredible motivation withgreat examples o previous experience,but you had chocolate so you win. It

makes absolutely no sense to me.Weget Community Engagement repre-sentatives who never organise a singleevent; Entertainment reps who relyon the rest o the Comm to help themwith residence parties; uck Shopreps who dont seem to understandthe concept o stocking up on goods.It all happens, and we have nobody toblame but ourselves.

Selection

By Colin Mkhize

In Lilian Ngoyi Hall, the possibilityo a popularity contest is eliminated by

having people apply or the positionwhich they are most suited or. Teysubmit an application with their moti-vation, ideas and credentials (i any).

Tese applications are then screenedby a selection committee whichultimately decides who gets the job.

Te selection committee isrepresentative o the entire house. In ahouse meeting, one person rom eachyear (rst year through to Honours) ischosen to sit on the committee along-side the incoming and outgoing seniorstudent and incoming sub-warden(s).

Te selection committee has theopportunity to choose the best t opeople to be on the House Comm. Tisis a very important aspect as positivegroup dynamics contribute a lot to the

eectiveness o the house committee.In my time as a Sub-Warden o Joe

Slovo House, I was involved in theHouse Comm selection process.

I remember having lengthy discus-

sions about the suitability o candi-dates or each portolio and who wouldbe the best t or the job. Writtenapplications also provide a standardto which candidates can be held toaer election.

I really eel that this process shouldbe implemented across campus, as iteliminates a lot o the risks associatedwith the popularity election.

It is air, allows or more inormedcandidates (as they really have to showa good understanding o the positionin their application) and is a good wayo developing a level o proessionalismamong students.

Election versus selectionin house committees

Student Apathyy Ben Rule

House committees are chosen through an election process rather than through a selection process. Photo: KELLAN

BOTHA

.


11/16

Scitech15 October 2013 Te Oppidan Press 11

Science cas are the uture o learningsitsi Mashingaidze

Science has oen been seen as boring,difcult and sel-regulating. A

revolutionary new learning approach,

ed Science Cas, is now seeking to change

perception and make science relevant and

ting to people internationally.

Te inaugural Ca Scientiques, or Science, was held in the UK in 1998 and the idea

since taken the world by storm. Cas haveped up everywhere rom Europe to Arica,some thousand or so cas regularly hosting

ntists or science writers who want to discussr work with diverse audiences.or the price o a cup o coee or a glass oe, anyone can come to discuss and share ideasny scientic subject. Tese gatherings are

ally held in cas, bookshops, bars,

aurants and movie theatres, but always

outside the traditional academic context o class-

rooms and lecture venues.

Although Science Cas seek to introduce anew method or learning rather than a new place,their location is still absolutely critical becauseit plays a role in how the events are viewed. Teca atmosphere is believed to be less dauntingthan more ormal learning settings, allowingparticipants to talk reely and to enter and leavethe meeting as they please. Its ambiance is meantto make science more relatable and accessibleto people.

Biochemistry Honours student BerniceMonchusi believes that this idea would work wellat Rhodes. Rhodes has a good shot at making itwork because good conversation, ood and drinksalways bring people together, she said.

Te main purpose o these cas is not toreplace lectures, but rather to supplement them.

Tey seek to create a space where science and

culture can merge. Tese cas act as tools which

can bring scientic research by proessionals to

the general public or ree, as the promoters othese events do not set out to make a prot or payspeakers to present their ndings.

raditionally, students would expect to belectured to whilst taking notes, study the givenmaterial and eventually sit or exams. However,Bachelor o Science student Mpho Kgwasi eelsthat although Science Cas are getting popular,they will never replace actual lectures. With thelectures system, you get trained in undamentaltheory which you need in the industry, asthoroughly as possible, and you have somethingto prove or it [at the end].

Te discussions between speakers and anyonepresent is based on equality and not necessarilyon knowledge. Te idea is to encourage the shar-ing thoughts and opinions.

ZooSoc Vice-Chairperson and Secretary

Nobantu Ngobe elt that it would be a good way

to attract students rom dierent aculties to

science societies. It would be the perect wayto create awareness. Te society gets exposureand, best o all, the coee and treats act as anincentive or people to learn something new,she said.

Its a good portal between people whounderstand science and those that do not, andacts as a good career guide or people who maywant to enter the eld, agreed Kgwasi.

Ca Scientiques are casual gatherings orthe average person who has an interest in whatgoes on in the scientic world. Tey are heldin the evenings and start with short talks, aerwhich a general discussion session is held.People o all ages can attend, mingle and areencouraged to ask questions, the most welcomebeing those that start with Tis might be a

stupid question, but.

had Keates

Santos, San Andreas is the set-

or Grand Tef Auto 5 (GAV)is it a big home indeed. Te

e is rich with great graphics and

astic gameplay and the map is

rmous. Tere is some level o

ractivity and i it werent or the

roller in your hands you would

k there was a living, breathing

d inside your monitor.harks, mountain lions and coyotes

populate the waters and valleyse games expansive landscape,e back at home in the city you canh a movie, go to a bar, play gol,is and even participate in yoga. Is too slow or you, you can take totreets or the air in everything

m cars and bikes to jets, jumbos andkis. Tis is a game riddled with all-dangers and all-new challenges.

ustomisation and choice are angral part o the game. Even youracters can be customised to suitunique tastes. You can choose toas ex-bank robber Michael, who

with a amily that doesnt likecourtesy o witness protection, orbe you preer Franklin, a gangster

searching or respect in a competitivecriminal society.

Alternatively, revor oers you anoutlandish character with an addictivepersonality. He is the last character youmeet and a drug-addict, murderer andex-soldier.You can still put your ownpersonal spin on these characters withall new custom traits, but regardlesso which you choose and how you kitthem out, these characters are inter-

changeable in conficts. Youll mostlikely need to switch between thembecause you cant just stand there inthe open with any character and expectto come o best. You need to choosewho is best, when.

Te advanced AI system makesthis especially important. Te days oclunky AI and bad physics are a thingo the past in this game. Cars eel likesomething out oNeed or Speed, policeare accurate and pedestrians react ac-

cordingly i you irritate them.Other than the reedom that GAV

oers you, it also has a solid and cred-ible plot. Missions range rom minorpickups and errands to massive heists

carried out while suspended rom therope o a hovering helicopter. Charac-ters even have to come together or the

more elaborate missions. Some mis-sions, such as the one where the FBIcontracts you to save a hostage rom ahigh rise building, are particularly well

thought out. You will come to shareyour characters sense o urgency andwatch as the relationships between

very dierent characters slowly pro-gress.Tis game is all about decisions.From the character you choose to themissions you take on, its all about

your choices. I you want to invest inproperty or try your luck on the stockexchange, you can.

Te game eels like previous GAtitles had a dinner party and invitedthe likes oRed Dead Redemption, TeSaboteur, Te Sims and Need For Speed

to all make one meal that culminatedin the rich tasty masterpiece that isGrand Tef Auto 5.

Grand Thet Auto 5: customisation that comes alive

Students are excited about the new Grand Thet Auto 5 which has expanded the amous Los Santos. Photo: TIFFANY

MAJERO


12/16

Photo StoryTe Oppidan Press 15 October 2013

Gabriella Fregona

W

hat sets Rocking the Daisies apart rom other estivals is its promise to protect the environ-ment in which it is held. Cloo Wine Estate is situated in Darling, Western Cape and is aworking vineyard. From 3-6 October it is transormed into a massive campsite brimming with

people, music, ood and litter.People chose to simply drop their rubbish less than a metre away rom an available rubbish bin. Bins were

allocated or recycling and general waste, but it only required a ew extra seconds o thought to distinguishwhere your rubbish needed to go. Tis is surely a sign that this eco-riendly estival had not so eco-riendlyestival goers.

Te estival provided smokers with portable ashtrays, encouraged estival-goers to hand in their rubbish inreturn or ree stu and also gave out ree beers or every ve cans returned to them. But it seems that most othe recycling and environmental initiatives are taken up by estival sponsors and a very ecient cleaning teamwhich has to clear through a mineeld o bottles, cups, cigarette butts and the like beore anyone wakes up.

Environmental projects like Walking the Daisies and Cycling the Daisies were well supported and decora-tions or the estival were made rom recycled materials, but the positive eect o these and other projectsseemed to be negated by the sheer volume o discarded waste at the end o the estival.

Rubbish the daisies1

2

3

4


13/16

Photo Story15 October 2013 Te Oppidan Press 13

Photo 1: Large hand decorations were constructed rom wooden planks.Photo 2: Pick n Pay provided water stations where people could access water as no bottledwater was sold at the estival.

Photo 3: Rubbish bins were located close to stages to enable people to recycle their litter.Photo 4: Recycled decorations or the estival included plastic Coca-Cola crates andLED lights.Photo 5: Glass restrictions meant more rubbish was seen outside the entrance.Photo 6: Cars are parked amongst daisies and estival-goers were encouraged to fll their carsto be environmentally conscious.Photo 7: Clean-up teams were seen around stage areas ater the last acts had fnished beorethe 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

5 6

7

8


14/16

enna Lille and Alex Maggs

Promised to be innovative,inormative and engaging,

the 24 minute documentaries

duced by the ourth-year V

nalism students will be show-

d tomorrow night at the Rhodes

atre. Te pieces grapple with a

ge o pertinent social issues.

though most o the pieces wered in and around Johannesburg,cs ranging rom albinism in Southca to Congolese reugees led the4 students all over the country inuit o their stories.udents Jacek Kaminski andhaela Linders ocussed on theosophical aspects o human

re through the ideas o renownedropologist and lmmaker Paul

Myburgh (in their project entitledConversations with Paul Myburgh).

Te piece explored the knowledge and

wisdom Myburgh had gathered duringthe seven years he spent living with theGwikwe Bushmen.

Amaal Salie, Debbie Potgieter andPalesa Mashigo ound themselvesdealing with highly emotional mate-rial. I Seek A Sae Place ocuses on theproblems aced by Congolese reugeesin Johannesburg and questions the hu-manity o our society and the reactionso South Aricans to asylum seekers.

Despite encountering sensitivematerial and graphic images that couldnot be used, the three were able towork with some remarkable people.

Everyone was so welcoming andgenerous with their stories. Despite

the atrocities they have seen theydisplay amazing resilience and

humanity, said Salie.All o the issues explored had socio-

political and cultural signicance and

were emotionally-charged in their ownway. Robyn Perros and assyn Munroexplored an issue close to their heartsin Xakhubasa, which delves into themyths and misconceptions surround-ing albinism in South Arica. Morespecically, they looked at the anza-nian muti-murders, wherein anza-nian albinos are murdered and theirbodies used in the making o muti orgood luck. the explanation apparentlybeing that their bodies are believed topossess magical qualities.

Despite a workshop engaging withethics in the eld, many students eltunprepared or the stories they en-countered. We did encounter ethical

dilemmas such as monetary compen-sation but the team understood that

the most we could oer was to telltheir story, said Mashigo.

Minette van der Walt, Katja

Schreiber and Kirsten Allnut encoun-tered numerous problems while work-ing on their project, Paper Dragons,which aims to give an alternativeperspective on the presence o theAsian community in South Arica. Tegroup was limited, however due to thecommunitys distrust o the press.

Te pieces are expected to bethought-provoking and aim to inspirestudents to ask more questions regard-ing these social issues.

Many students may already havean understanding o the topics raisedin the documentaries issues o colouraecting ones saety, stereotypicalviews o dierent cultures or the

need to immigrate to seek reuge but the lms aim to put aces to

these problems.Even educated people who have

knowledge and access to inormation

still dont know much. It is anopportunity to learn something newand walk away with a dierent mind-set, explained Perros.

Arts & EntertainmentTe Oppidan Press 15 October 2013

RUTV 4 doccies promise to engage and provoke

The old and new Oppidan Press teams gathered or speeches at the 2013 AGM. Photo: ALEXA SEDGWICK

dvertorial

s editors, there is no better eeling than taking comort

n your own obsolescence. Tis is something that we at Te

ppidan Press are lucky enough to experience on an almost

eekly basis, so committed and capable is the team that we

ad. With that in mind, it elt tting to thank the studenturnalists who drive this publication in style at the Graham

otel or our 2013 AGM.

Arriving at the venue to nd the conerence room draped white and rosted with airy lights, we were greeted by ullrvice and riendly hotel sta. Large platters o cocktail snacksere laid out on tables in the centre o the room and in the

orner a well-stocked bar promised to keep spirits high as thevening progressed.

Te theme was Te Hour, a BBC drama series that ollowshe action o a newsroom in London during the 1950s. As theam ltered in through the hotel lobby, pencil skirts, tweed

azers and suspenders transormed an already stylish settingnd the hustle o ordinary Grahamstown lie was le on thereet outside.Amidst speeches and awards, our team was able tolax with a glass o punch and enjoy one anothers company

ithout the stress o deadlines and the mania o putting theewspaper together. All agreed that the ood was antastic andere glad that the spacious conerence room easily accommo-ated our large team, allowing everyone to move about witheir plates and mingle easily.During one o the most stressul times o year or this pub-

cation, it was wonderul to see our team able to ully unwind,everything was taken care o. Helpul and obliging, the

raham Hotel sta made sure everybody was happy or theuration o what ended up being a long evening, with drinksurning to dancing and everyone taking to the foor as music

ared rom the sound system provided.All in all, the AGM was a great close to a successul year. Te

st or some and rst or others, it was easily one o the bestghts the team has been able to share. Our grateul thanks are

xtended to Graham Hotel and all those who worked to makehe evening as enjoyable as it turned out to be.

Celebrating The Oppidan Press at Graham Hotel

Outgoing Chie Designer Chevawn Blum accepts her award rom the team. Photo: ALEXA SEDGWICK

Despite the

atrocities they

have seen

they display

amazing

resilience and

humanity

- Amaal Salie


15/16

Sport15 October 2013 Te Oppidan Press 15

Internal soccer leaguemanagement meltdown

rees o the Internal Soccer League have still not been paid as a result o

agerial blunders by the Rhodes Sports Administration. Photo: KELLAN

HA

By Douglas Smith

Aseries o managerial blunders

by Rhodes Sports Admin-

istration have resulted in

chaos within the Rhodes Internal

Soccer League. Reerees have still

not received payment or their work

during the season which came to an

end last term.

Director o Reerees or the leagueaurai Kativu said that problemswere created by a new reeree manage-ment system that was implementedthis year.

In the past, Sports Admin would pay

reerees R50 in cash or each matchthey had reereed, making a collec-tive payment at month end. Te newsystem requires Sports Admin to gothrough the salaries department beore

paying reerees.Tis means that reerees must ll out

paperwork recording their work orthe league and submit it withinthe rst week o each month. SportsOcer Sanel Sobahle said, Preerablywe would like to pay through monthly,but its a Rhodes procedure.

Late submission can result in amonths delay to the entire process.Even now, at least ve o the reerees

have not submitted their paperworkand cannot be paid, Kativu said.

Tis was the reason or reerees notbeing paid last semester. However, thissemester there was conusion as tohow much reerees were to be paid permatch, which caused urther delay.

Initially the payment was agreedat R50. Te head o reereeing thentried to tell us that the amount hadbeen lowered to R30 per game, aerwe had nished reereeing. Obviouslywe all complained, said Paul Burgess,who reereed 10 games this season.

Sobahle said that there had simplybeen a misunderstanding and that as

soon as this was realised the amountwas readjusted to R50 per match

However, Sports Admin had alreadyadjusted all o the paperwork to refectthe new payment o R30. Tis meant

that they had to redo the paperworkor each reeree to ensure that thesalaries department did not reject theincorrect gures.

Kativu was assured that reereeswould be paid in September, once thisissue had been dealt with. Tis dead-line was missed, however, and the newocial payment date is 25 October with many reerees hoping that thiswill be honoured.

Te delayed payment o reereesnegatively impacted the league.Reerees began to miss xtures and insome cases spectators were called uponas volunteer reerees.

I try to make it a point to conrmwith reerees on the day to make surethat they are available, said Kativu,but without payment they have nomotivation to be consistent. I literallycross my ngers every league night.

Kativu had to reeree matches him-sel at the last minute on several occa-sions. He hasnt been paid a cent yet.It is air and square or us to blamethe system, but then what are we doing

about it? he said.Sobahle said that Sports Admin has

appointed a single league coordinatoror next year in order to avoid com-munication breakdowns. Te newly

announced league coordinator or2014, Kudzai Nzombe will have a bigresponsibility on his shoulders.

Sports Admin have also decided thatmore external, qualied reerees willbe appointed next year. Each gamewill be controlled by three reerees,two external and one internal. Tismeans that the league will have le-gitimate linesmen or the rst time toensure legitimacy.


16/16

Sports

Customisation is thename o the game

Open campusconcerns

The case or a longerundergrad

Page 11Page 2 Page 4

randon Yates

Rhodes Sport has suered a

great deal in the past ew

years due to a lack o invest-

t rom the university. Many

ms have struggled due to nancial

traints, but more have thrived

ite this.

Rhodes Sport has to compete with

emic projects or unding. Tiswe are still operating with lasts budget allocation, said Head ots Administration Mandla Gagayi.

hodes rugby has been greatly a-

d by this issue. Despite continuedport rom passionate ans, a lacknding rom the university haslted in rugby teams being orced tounder sub-standard foodlights on

rly managed elds.Te Rhodes Rugby Club does

even own a unctioning scrum-hine, a tool which is vital orch preparation.crum-machines, proper eld

ntenance and quality foodlights

very expensive, explained Gagayi.w foodlights would cost R3.2on alone.spite o the unding problems,

y o Rhodes sporting sidesorm incredibly well on a national. Member o the Rhodes RowingJonas Vijverberg elaborated, We

pete against the top universities

in the country on a regular basis. At arecent [SASSU] competition we placedsecond, with the University o Capeown winning in the end.

Te club also perormed well at the2013 Boatrace Championship,in which they won the Best NoviceCrew title and the sta team wontheir race against the University o

Johannesburg sta crew.Te Rhodes First Mens Hockey side

has also been extraordinarily success-ul this year. Tey have been promotedto compete in the Varsity Cup nextyear aer a highly successul tour toCape own in July. While undinghas always been an issue or our club,our team runs smoothly and is well

organised, said the teams goalkeeperWayde Guedes.

Te achievements o both theseteams are extraordinary or a relativelysmall university with nancial strainsin the sports department. Te commit-ment shown by the teams, as well asthe results they produce, is proo thatRhodes University possesses athletes

and teams that can succeed on anational level despite poor unding.

Following these positive results,it was announced on 30 Septemberthat Rhodes had signed the VarsitySports Agreement.

Sue Smailes signed the agreement onbehal o the University, while FrancoisPienaar signed on behal o VarsitySports and Advent Sport Entertain-

ment and Media (ASEM).Tis means that Rhodes has now

been given the chance to competeagainst universities rom around thecountry. Mens hockey will be the

rst Varsity Sport that Rhodes willparticipate in.

Participation in other sports such asbeach volleyball, sevens rugby, soccerand netball is available. However, all othese sports will have to put them-selves through the University SportsSouth Arica (USSA) qualicationprocess rst.

Te university has now secured agreat opportunity to urther excel onthe sporting scene. But there is still the

need or nancial investment rom theuniversity as well as commitment romathletes to ensure that this opportunityis ully utilised.

Tese two eorts combined canpotentially result in Rhodes competingagainst the top universities in SouthArica in a variety o sporting codes inthe uture.

nvestment needed or greater sporting success

Sporting acilities at Rhodes are slowly decaying due to a lack o investment in their upkeep. PHOTO: KELLAN BOTHA

Kimara Singh

eagerly anticipated nal o the Rhodes In-

nal Premier League saw two- time champi-

Te ops Awkward urtles ace o against

Mighty Hedgehogs at the Great Field on

day 11 October.

and a partnership o 42 between Craig Dargieand Captain Jonty van der Meulen quickly bol-stered their score.

Van der Meulen came to play a pivotal role inthe remainder o the urtles innings, scoring108 runs not out rom 61 balls. His 128-run thirdwicket partnership with Matt Clark (32*) saw

some clever bowling rom the urtles and morewickets alling soon aer. Aer just ve overs,Te Hedgehogs were in deep trouble with a scoreo 34 or 3.

A furry o 4s and a 6 helped to ease thepressure, but in the end their poor shot selectionat crucial points in the game cost Te Hedgehogs

respectively, conceding a minimal 30 runs be-tween them.

Van der Meulen was ecstatic about Te urtlesthird Internal Premier League victory. I washappy that we got o to a good start and kickedon rom there.

I was also glad with our 190 odd score as the

Turtles saw a victory over The Hedgehogs at the Rhodes Internal Premier League fnal on Friday night. Photo: NICK DAKIN

Turtles clinch third Internal Premier League title

the oppidan press edition 10, 2013 (investec rhodes top 10)

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