Some final-year students at the University of Technology (UTech) are now furious as they claim they are being forced by lecturers to participate in undesirable, and offensive activities that go against their religious beliefs as part of their schoolwork.

THE STAR was informed that the students, who are enrolled in the Business Administration degree programme, have to participate in a raffle and attend a weekly 'session' which those persons who are Christians are opposed to.

Notwithstanding, the illustration of their Christianity, at least one Christian student told our news team that they have to attend or risk failing the course altogether if they are absent.

"My religious belief says that I can't be involved in any form of raffle and yet still, we were given two raffle books to sell and if we refuse, we were told we would be given zero and will have to resit the course," a student emphasised.

The students, who are a part of a group called production and operations management, told THE STARthat they had voiced their disapproval openly in a lecture session but it seems their complaints have fallen on deaf ears.

Since then, "We have talked about it among ourselves because everybody is afraid to speak out," another student added.

Another problem the frustrated students say they are having is that they are being forced to garner monies on a regular basis, as the course has a high dependence on its collection from fund-raising efforts to host a final seminar in March.

"We are being forced to collect money by any means and this is forcing us to become professional extortionists," an exasperated student remarked.

Some students say the task at hand for raising money consistently is so difficult that they have to use money out of their own pockets to satisfy the rigid financial demands of the course.

In response to the assertions made by students, Director of Advancement in the office of Corporate Communications at UTech, Hector Wheeler, told THE STAR that he was unaware of such complaints but would conduct an investigation.

At the same time,Wheeler added, "UTech would never force them to do anything that they wouldn't want to do ... I'm sure there's no big stick over them to do something that's against their religion."