A heated exchange has erupted between Higher Education Minister Bhuti Manamela and Members of Parliament (MPs) over the appointment and remuneration of four advisors to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme’s (NSFAS) administrator Professor Hlengani Mathebula.
The Portfolio Committee on Higher Education is questioning whether the Minister approved the advisors’ remuneration, as required by the NSFAS Act.
Manamela struggled to provide a direct answer, telling MPs the department would provide the information, prompting further questions from the committee over how the advisors could be paid without clarity on who approved their remuneration.
