All entries for Tuesday 24 January 2006

A new low

Union democracy reached a new low this evening when fewer than 80 people turned up to the AGM. The AGM is in some respects the centrepiece of the Union's democratic calendar, and as a Union Officer I feel embarassed by what I've seen tonight. It's long been an opinion of mine that motions should only be taken to General Meeting if they genuinely warrant it; failing which they should be taken instead to the next Council meeting. This frees up the AGM to explore in more depth the central issues of the Union's accounts, auditors, aims, objectives, strategy, and general well-being.

I believe that many more people would be interested in an opportunity to examine and scrutinise the Union's financial records and its strategy, than are interested in discussing academic freedom in Iran. This is no disrespect to the proposers of the motion referred to, which incidentally I voted for, but merely a reflection on where the priorities ought to lie in a General Meeting (as opposed to in a Council meeting). My growing concern is that motions are brought to General Meeting purely for the sake of it; this dilutes the essence of the meeting and distracts from the true objectives of an AGM.

The focus is in the wrong place. I have five months left in my position on the Executive Committee, and I will do everything I can in this time to redress the balance outlined above, and ensure that no future Executive Committee has to suffer the embarassment I felt this evening.

Amit Sood : 24 Jan 2006 22:35 |  Comments (53) |  Close comments |  Report a problem