Students in Public universities are once again paying the price for a government that has failed to secure a lasting deal with lecturers and other university workers, despite having promised to resolve the dispute after a devastating 49-day strike last year.

The strike, which began on October 2, entered its second week yesterday after negotiations between the Government and university unions collapsed, with the unions rejecting the latest offer as inadequate. The absence of the National Treasury from the talks raised further questions about the Government’s commitment to resolving a dispute whose financial implications should be central to the negotiations.