Stranded students demand for a refund

MUSANZE – Students not eligible for Government sponsorship at the Higher Institute of Science, Agriculture and Animal husbandry-ISAE Busogo have asked the university administration to refund their registration fees. Over 80 students who had registered with the university were dismissed after it emerged that they were not eligible for sponsorship from the Students Financing Agency for Rwanda (SFAR). The students who talked to The New Times accused the sponsorship agency of removing them from the original list of students who had qualified for government sponsorship. ‘’We have been here for eight days, we used all the money we had, the university should refund our registration fees, to transport us back home’’ one of the affected students said. Some of the students are said to have paid over Rwf65,000 before being registered. When contacted, the university Vice Rector in charge of academics, Patrice Hategekimana, said the decision of refunding the students’ money would be taken by the executive council. He explained that the university rules do not allow refund of the registration fees, adding that since the issue required immediate attention, the students should formally write to the university authorities instead of chanelling their complaints through the press. ‘Where do they expect us to go? We were told when it was already too late. We shall stay here until they give back our money, or reconsider their position,’ another student said. The Director General of SFAR, Emmanuel Muvunyi, said last week that there was no basis for the students to complain. ‘Students only based on the list that appeared in a government weekly run news paper (Imvaho). This list only indicated students who have been admitted in the respective universities which has nothing to do with SFAR,’ Muvunyi said. Ends