News

The future of OUSA’s governing structure and a proposal to move SGMs online is to be put to referendum this week.

The new structure, if voted through, will consist of ten Executive members and the Te Roopu President as an ex-officio position with voting rights. There are five core positions: President, Administrative Vice President, Finance Officer, Welfare Officer, Education Officer, and five General Reps overseeing five portfolios: Clubs and Recreation, Colleges and Communication, International, Campaigns, and Postgraduate. There will also be various committees, such as the Welfare Committee, where representatives of different groups will sit. The portfolios would be flexible, and will be allocated among the General Reps at the start of the new Executive’s term.
The proposal, over a year in the works, comes after extensive consultation and a feeling that the 17-person Exec is unwieldy and cumbersome. 
There are concerns, however, that the proposal may be undemocratic and unrepresentative, and has been rushed through.
The current representative function of the Executive council would thus be modified in favour of an administrative, ‘board of executives’ approach. Rather than attempt to make the Executive itself representative, the proposal emphasises a bottom-up strategy, and its advocates argue that it will be more inclusive than the current structure. At a ground level various committees would meet to discuss issues, and feed their views back to the Executive, who would be effectively bound to accept the recommendations of the committee – much like the relationship between the University Senate and Council.
All students are eligible to both run for and vote for the ten Exec positions; however, students will not run for specific portfolios or spots on the committees and instead by appointed to the roles by the Exec. There were concerns non-postgrads and non-International students could fill those roles, but this has been taken into consideration and policy will now ensure this is not the case.
Some people are worried that the structure would give too much power to unelected students. As the Executive will follow the decisions of committees, unelected students would be given a substantial role in OUSA policy making. In the Exec meeting of 29 June, Queer Rep Ros MacKenzie voiced her concerns regarding this, and voted against the proposed structure. In response to the concerns that the Exec appointing people to the Welfare Committee (where positions like the Queer and Womens Rep would located) and Education Committee is undemocratic, OUSA President Harriet Geoghegan says as the Exec is elected, students should trust they have representative views and make an appropriate choice.
There are further concerns that OUSA’s process in adopting the policy has been questionable and the policy has been pushed through. The Working Party’s proposal was accepted on 5 July with only ten Exec members in attendance, barely over half of the Exec.
Neil Barber, the former Queer Rep, commented on OUSA’s Facebook page: “The idea is great – and the philosophy behind the report is excellent – however, the work is only half-done so is nowhere near ready to go to referendum yet ...”
UniQ Secretary Richard Girvan, speaking to Critic in a personal capacity, said “I know of some people who are quite angry at the loss of the Queer Rep,” and told Critic that he was concerned that “the method of appointments are an issue, there is a lack of democratic input and subsequently the issue of recourse arises.”
The Exec has been anxious for this referendum to take place before the elections in August, so if it is adopted, students will be able to vote people in to the new positions. Last year’s dysfunctional Exec had planned to have a referendum for a new governing structure this year, but missed this crucial deadline.
“Every single Exec has wanted to make these changes for six years and been unsuccessful,” Geoghegan says. “This Working Party has been going for over a year and we’ve consulted every possible person. There is definitely no way it has been rushed.” 
Constitutionally, as the President is the only official media spokesperson, Exec members are effectively gagged from talking Critic about the issue, and have refused to speak on the record despite numerous approaches.
As we reported last week, advocates of the proposal maintain the new structure will allow the Executive to be more accountable. Geoghegan believes the new structure will be more efficient and more representative.
A move to make SGMs more accessible by moving them online is also on the referendum ballot this week.
Students can weigh in on the debate at a forum at midday today and vote online, also from midday until 4pm Thursday.