Chaos ensued on the N2 after protesting Walter Sisulu University students blockaded the route near the Mthatha’s Nelson Mandela Drive campus with rocks and burning tyres on Tuesday morning.
Motorists were forced to find alternative routes to get in and out of the town.
The Dispatch was unable to speak to the protestors as some threw rocks and hurled insults at a Dispatch journalist and some of the onlookers, including employees from a nearby food retail shop.
However, in a whatsapp message sent on Monday night, one of the students said their main grievances stemmed from NSFAS introducing a new system for students.
They were also unhappy with accommodation issues in the university.
The protestors were also seen pelting two police inyalas which were trying to clear the road with stones.
The police retaliated by firing rubber bullets, stun grenades, and used teargas to disperse the crowd.
Eastern Cape provincial traffic spokesperson Unathi said, “It is so unfortunate that more often than not, when people have grievances of any sort, some of which have nothing to do with roads, they take to the roads to demonstrate their anger.”
