University students, where is your voice?

University students, especially those at Chancellor College and The Polytechnic, are always in the news. Of course, that is not news.

But of late I have noted news in this: the slow but steady change in the reasons that put them in the news. For years, the students have been in the news for two main reasons.

First, their internal politics: protesting fee hikes, delays in disbursement of their allowances and demands for better services. Second, their participation in national politics: protesting poor political and economic governance.

However, in the past three or four years, I have observed a tactical withdrawal of the students’ participation in national issues and deepening obsession with their internal politics.

History can best explain this.

From the 60s, university students have lived through three critical periods of Malawi’s history: a period of dictatorship [1964-1991], democratisation [1991-1994] and entrenchment of democracy, good governance and development [1994 onwards].

During the dictatorship period, there wasn’t so much news from university students. Demonstrations—in whatever form—were banned. As such, the only means of speaking out was through using indirect means: poetry, drama, music, etc.

Still, amidst all these indirect means, some students, such as Chancellor College law professor Edge Kanyongolo, were detained without trial for being seen to be critical of the establishment.

In other words, avenues of political participation, both internal and domestic, were narrow for university students during the age of dictatorship.

The period of the democratisation process, however, changed everything. In fact, it all began in 1992 when Chancellor College students took to the streets in support of the Pastoral Letter by Catholic Bishops—a historical piece which condemned Dr Kamuzu Banda’s autocracy and sowed seeds of its collapse.

After the results of the 1993 referendum were announced, it was not jubilant Chanco students who danced their way around Zomba City who made news. Rather, the demonstration included 40 female students who—in a show announcing the beginning of a cultural liberalisation—dressed in mini-skirts and pantaloons, the kind of dressing banned since 1965.

Surely, the period of the democratisation process did not just open up the students’ avenues of expression. It also, most importantly, sent a message to the nation that besides learning, university students are powerful social and political activists with a numerical and intellectual advantage to herald and lead change.

In fact, since 1994—in what is the current period of entrenchment of democracy, good governance and development—university students have always been in the news.

On internal politics, we saw how Chanco students protested the idea of having a sitting president as Chancellor of University of Malawi. We also saw in 2000 how they protested the fee hike. And we continue to see how they protest the delay of their book allowances, poor social services etc.

On national politics, whenever there have been political hiccups calling for public redress, university students have always been on the frontline of change. From Bakili Muluzi’s Third/Open Term bids of 2003 and acute food shortages of 2001 to the impeachment threats of 2006 and conspiracy to shoot down the budget of 2007/8, university students stood up and spoke through demonstrations and vigils.

I am not saying Bingu wa Mutharika was not impeached or the budget was not shot down because of student demonstrations. Rather, when some few gluttons conspired to wreak havoc on the land, university students, driven by the spirit of good governance and development, chose not to remain silent.

However, as argued before, in the past, say three to four years, I have observed a tactical withdrawal of these students’ participation in national issues. From 2010, Malawi entered a dark chapter of poor governance—something that reared its ugly head on the welfare of the citizens. We never saw Unima students, in show of protest, coming out in their numbers to speak out.

In fact, when poor governance docked on their shores through the academic freedom saga, I was surprised that we did not have a united front of university students coming out to speak out against it. Of course, there were moments when Chanco students came out to protest. But the protests were driven by their need to go back to class rather than condemning a president who was infringing on academic freedom.

Yet, within the same period, we experienced countless demonstrations and road blocking on their internal politics: good food, delayed book allowances, calendar change and etc.

Are our university students retiring from national issues?

The cashgate is another case in point. The case represents one of the country’s potent symbols of poor economic and political governance with a strong bearing on development. I expected our students to be in the forefront speaking out against it. I expected, just like it happened in 2005 and 2006, a united Unima student front to demonstrate and demand answers from the President.

Guess what we have? Just last week, Chanco students damaged a car belonging to their lecturer as part of protests over delayed book allowances.

And, again, I ask: Are our university students retiring from national issue?

Let me end where I began.  University students are always in the news. Of course, this is not new; as such, not news at all. But what is news is that these days they are always in the news protesting delayed book allowances rather than demonstrating against continued poor governance in the country.