Fully paid-up students at the Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) have been ordered to vacate their on-campus hostels to allow for renovations ahead of the ruling Zanu PF party’s 23rd National Conference scheduled for October. The sudden relocation, which saw students moved to Chinhoyi High School, has drawn sharp criticism from student leaders who say the move was made without consultation and threatens academic progress.
According to the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) CUT Chapter, the affected students include final-year learners working on dissertations. Hillary Masango, the union’s chairperson at CUT, described the eviction as an “autocratic, short-notice decree” that prioritises administrative convenience over student welfare. He accused university management of treating students as “second-class citizens” and shifting them around “at a whim.”
Masango further warned that the relocation poses safety risks and disrupts study schedules, particularly for those in critical stages of their academic work. “We will not sit back while administrative recklessness disrupts students’ lives. Education is a right, not a privilege,” he said.
The renovations are reportedly intended to upgrade accommodation facilities for delegates attending the Zanu PF conference. CUT Director of Public Relations and Communications, Shadreck Nembaware, was not reachable for comment at the time of publishing.
The eviction underscores ongoing tensions between institutional requirements for high-profile political events and the rights of students, with many questioning why paid-up students had to be displaced for party-related renovations.
