A candid look at the Co-presidential election process.
Electioneering. It’s all part of the inherent nature of student politics and the democratic process, I suppose, but as I sit here tentatively sipping my cup of tea, it occurs to me that for once, just once, I’d like to eat my breakfast without hearing the echoes of campaigning and false election promises ringing throughout the Lincoln dining hall. Over the past two days though, and with five delegates running for the coveted position of NZUSA co-president, that’s what I’ve been hearing not just at breakfast, but almost every minute of the day. Workshops have constantly been turned into election platforms as some candidates can’t seem to get enough of the sound of their own voice. Which is a shame really, considering I’ve noticed that many of the delegates present at this conference other than those running for office have a lot to contribute to certain discussions being held. But I digress.
It’s the final day of conference. I’ve just eaten what could be considered the world’s worst muffin and we’re heading into closing plenary, where motions are passed and co-presidents are elected. The mood is tense as the five candidates prepare to battle it out in what could turn into a bloodbath. Personally, I’m looking forward to taking some sadistic pleasure in watching the candidates squirm under the scrutiny of their constituents as after having witnessed what can only be described as the slaughtering of last years sole candidate, I assume that this sentiment of hostility will be amplified immensely with more candidates.
Joseph “Joey” Randall, the ex NZUSA Co-President for 2006-2007 and returning officer for this years elections, starts the election plenary by outlining the processes for the elections. The speaking order, says Joey, is randomly selected and the candidates will have seven minutes to present, followed by four questions taken from the floor. The first candidate to present to the masses will be Benjamin ‘Pene’ Delaney, current President of the Waikato Students Union.
Penes’ presentation is a good mix of humour and politics. He tells the delegation that one of his most positive attributes is the fact that he’s “memorable” as “no one is going to forget a 5 foot Maori”. There is no real vision presented within his speech, but it appears that the delegation is willing to hear him out. He gets a relatively easy time during the question and answer session and it seems a reasonable sort of presidential pitch, if not a little light on content.
This provides a stark contrast to what can only be referred to as a bizarre spectacle that follows. Filimino Lemisio, of the Wellington Institute of Technology, starts his speech by playing some funky reggae music and attempts to get all the delegates to stand up and dance. It feels a little like I’m on the set of Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show as everyone gets up and somewhat obligingly claps along to the rhythm whilst his Weltec compatriots and other supporters chant “yes we can!” He then talks about being a product of the ITP sector and how NZUSA haven’t been “pulling their socks up” and discusses how the current structure fosters a sense of hostility between the university and ITP sectors. It’s a rather garbled pitch and I am left confused.
It is then announced by Joey that Fili had indicated that he does not want to take questions from the floor. Due to the hostile reaction, Fili soon amends this to be that he won’t answer questions he doesn’t want to, which makes him sound as though he is a true politician already. His knowledge in the tertiary sector is limited and his answers to the questions he will answer leave a lot to be desired.
The third candidate to speak is Kent Lambert, also of Weltec. He firstly apologies if the delegates are unaware of why he is running and proceeds to talk about the three areas of NZUSA that he would improve if elected. He speaks of improving communication; his belief in the ITP sector (at this stage in the proceedings he get rather forceful about his point of view and starts yelling at us all and pummelling the desk at the front of the room to the extent that I start cowering in my chair) and how he would encourage the unification of delegates within NZUSA. He doesn’t quite make it to his third point as his time runs out, but he later clarifies that he also supports the university sector whilst “empowering the disempowered”. He also gets rather fired up over the vacancy of the NWRO position, stating that whilst he does believe in the value of the NWRO position, he would “bite the bullet and push for the abolition of the NWRO position” if the FedEx wanted it gone. A sad day for the positive progression of women’s rights within the tertiary sector indeed. I shake my head sadly.
David Do, former President of AUSA, is the fourth speaker. He starts off by speaker fluently in Te Reo Maori, which impresses the delegation immensely. He speaks of his extensive knowledge of the tertiary sector. His approach to his bid for leadership in student politics is an all inclusive, warm and rather humorous presentation that was rich in information. His questions cover a variety of topics including the ITP sector, VSM, management vs representation and his alignment with a specific political party, which he clarifies will take a backseat if he is elected Co-president.
Alex Sorensen, President of Massey University Wellington, is the final candidate to present her case to the delegation. The presentation starts by her telling us how nervous she is and then proceeds to waste about 10-20 seconds of her allocated time by deep breathing. Alex then talks about her leadership skills and her personal and professional achievements. She speaks of her “breath of knowledge of the tertiary sector” and throws about a variety of jargon most likely sourced from the business management 101 textbook. At question time, asked about her potentially running for the NWRO position if her presidential bid fails, she spoke of how this would interest her as she would like to “streamline” the Thursdays in Black campaign, as though it were a money generating business and not a human rights effort. She also talks of working “smarter, not harder” if she were elected Co-President.
I’m surprised at how poor the calibre of questions are from the delegates as, after the slaughtering of the sole candidate running in the 2009 election plenary, it feels as though the voting process is a wee bit of a farce . Whilst I’m not suggesting that candidates have to be interrogated or given the Spanish inquisition in order to deserve their position, it would be nice to see some slightly critical or constructive questions coming from the floor.
Then its pronounced voting time, whereby the each association is asked to grab a voting form and decide which candidate best represents the needs and interests of NZUSA. Each candidate needs 54 votes in order to be elected into one of the two coveted spots, as this adds up to a two-thirds majority of the total voting pool.
The results are back in. Each candidate, under their cool façade, looks nervous with anticipation. Joey then announces the results of the first round: David Do receives 74 votes out of a possible 80, well over the threshold required by the membership, and is the first Co-President elected for 2010. He looks elated and receives a standing ovation from the delegation. After having only received one vote from the delegation, Fili withdrew from the co-presidential nomination.
The three remaining candidates are each asked two more questions in order to assist the delegation with their voting. Alex is first to receive a second round of questions, where she was asked about her alleged support of the 5% fee increases at Massey University. Despite numerous evidence supporting the contrary (including documents obtained by Satellite), she vehemently denied ever advocating for a fee increase.
Pene stepped up to the plate next, where he was asked about if he was concerned by the lack of Maori representation on local governing bodies. He replied, rather lengthily, that he was.
Kent was the final candidate still standing to answer questions from the floor. He spoke of the unity of NZUSA and how that “unity has to come from the students of Aotearoa and not just of the constituents”.
Voting once again ensues. The results show that no candidate had reached the required threshold and Alex withdraws her nomination gracefully. The delegates show her immense support for having put her name forward and she is greeted by loud applause.
The third round returns a similar result, with Pene Delaney falling just two votes short of the required two thirds majority needed. The crowd lets out a sigh, either disappointed with not having both co-presidents elected or frustrated with the fact that the election took so bloody long .