Macquarie University Student Election to the University Council (2 Viewers)

[AsyLum]

The System Works!

 

[MaryJane]

3) "Lobby the Co-op Bookshop to reduce prices of books and unit readers". Again another hit we students take is through textbooks, so I was interested how you would negotiate such a reduction in price?

How can you lobby a (admittedly corrupt) CO-OPERATIVE bookshop? The theory would go the prices are as low as possible because co-op = not for profit.

He is such a dick.

Everyone go the greenie!

Steve and I posted our votes off yesterday.

 

[Tabris]

I dont bother getting involved with the student union anymore, the biggest change i have seen so far is the new walkway from one end to another and E4A and E4B. I dont really think the student unions did that or funded it.

Imagine they actually used their money to help install air con. in the W5A/B/C block...or even get some decent chairs and tables, even high schools get better stuff than us....

As for coop, theres nothing that can be done, its not for profit, it has to cover the bills, the high markups are more from the publishers than coop.

In reality, most of the stuff they campaign wont happen, they can vouch or campaign for it, but it wont happen.

Just plain political bs, if it werent for the fobby asians, victor ma wouldnt be there,

Your just voting for someone who wants something good on their resume and CV

 

[Good_riceZ]

something on the resume?

like "I promise things when I really can't deliver them" - please hire me peepz

 

[Monstar]

i got this crap in the mail. do i need to do it?

 

[lcf]

i got this crap in the mail. do i need to do it?

yeah - this isn't compulsory is it?

All i know is Victor Ma is one letter away from being an evil ruler ...

 

[Kegs]

No, you dont have to vote, but you should. So far, people have mentioned the Student Council and union (SAM), when these elections are for the University Council. They are three different bodies, two of which Victor is president, the other he is the student rep. In my two years at the uni I have really seen nothing positive that Victor has done for the students. He says he will do all the things in his campaign statement, but if you look at his campaign statements from the last 3 years, they have all said the same thing and yet nothing has changed. (Yes, I have seen copies of his statements in the last week, I know someone who kept them.) Even his photo last year was the same.

You may think it wont make a difference if you vote but voting gives you the right to complain when it is fucked. Some people are fairly cynical when it comes to student elections of any kind and I totally understand that. But I can give you two guarantees right now. Nick is not with Victor and the last thing on his mind is his CV. He actually cares about what he says and is working hard to make the uni a more environmentally friendly place. More parking spaces will never get built in the time I am here and books will never get cheaper (does anything?), but we can make the uni save power. We can make the uni recycle. (Everything in the SAM building gets put in one bin at the end of the day) Last year, one lecturer removed countless CRT monitors that were going to landfill from the skips around uni and had them recycled instead, at his own expense.

These are the sorts of things that Nick wants to see happen more widely. The uni claims to be doing things, but they couldn’t even get it right for Earth Hour. Nick wants the student voice to be heard and if we are willing then that voice can be through him. For more info about Nick, visit http://www.myspace.com/nick_mueller
For those of you who don't know me, I seconded Nick.

 

[withoutaface]

But how does saving power or recycling shit help the student community? That's a job for the university administration, not something student organisations already struggling for cash should be pouring money into.

 

[iambored]

well we can choose from 2 people, 1 who says he will lobby co-op and build more parking spaces every year and never does. the other is up for the first (?) time and may do something. anything positive the second person says is going to hold more weight than anything the first person says. i might vote (and to think my papers were on the way to the bin a couple of days ago)

(Everything in the SAM building gets put in one bin at the end of the day)

even though we go to the trouble of putting the paper in the paper section and the plastic in a different section of the bin??

 

[xeuyrawp]

well we can choose from 2 people

Did you even read his post?

But how does saving power or recycling shit help the student community? That's a job for the university administration, not something student organisations already struggling for cash should be pouring money into.

a) Recycling shit helps the student community because of it potentially saves money. I also won't point out that students are part of a larger community, which recycling direcly helps.
b) The University Council is not a student council, or a student organisation. It is part of the university administration, as you put it.
c) The University Council is not struggling for cash. If Nick was elected as student representative onto the University Council, I can assure you he would not be 'pouring money into' environmental issues.

You seem to think that this is an election for our union. =/

You think that an aspiring student representative for a union board would bother to get their facts right first before commenting...?

Edit: Just to clarify: This is this University Council.

 

[iambored]

Did you even read his post?

haha damn, what did i do? yeah but i didn't take it all in, i'll read it again
read it again but sort of skimmed it because i don't want to waste time and still don't know what i said wrong but it doesn't matter because skimming the post has potentially got him a vote which is really all that matters in elections

 

[AsyLum]

I'll be glad I don't have to put up with their hijinks after this year rofl

 

[xeuyrawp]

I'll be glad I don't have to put up with their hijinks after this year rofl

Yeah, I'm with you on that one. Wonder if they have this crap overseas...

 

[withoutaface]

a) Recycling shit helps the student community because of it potentially saves money. I also won't point out that students are part of a larger community, which recycling direcly helps.
b) The University Council is not a student council, or a student organisation. It is part of the university administration, as you put it.
c) The University Council is not struggling for cash. If Nick was elected as student representative onto the University Council, I can assure you he would not be 'pouring money into' environmental issues.

You seem to think that this is an election for our union. =/

Apologies, I only scanned through the thread, saw Ma's name and assumed it was the equivalent of our SRC or UNSW's guild, as opposed to a university body. Carry on.

You think that an aspiring student representative for a union board would bother to get their facts right first before commenting...?

Because as someone running for a position on a USyd student organisation I should know the name and circumstances surrounding every university election in NSW?

 

[xeuyrawp]

Because as someone running for a position on a USyd student organisation I should know the name and circumstances surrounding every university election in NSW?

Heh.

Dude, if I was a full-time student at USyd, I would vote for you. I'm just trying to wind you up.

Hence the

 

[AsyLum]

Dear Michael,

I am glad to have received your email.

1) Academic merit based scholarships has existed in Macquarie University for a long time. Earlier in 2006, I had a few meetings with the new Vice Chancellor Prof. Steven Swartz and one of the topics of our discussion was about equity. We both agreed that by creating scholarships based not just on academic merit but also taking into consideration a student's financial circumstances may be a good method in creating a more equitable campus.

At this present moment and with much credit to the Vice Chancellor, the University is already embarking on the creation of this new equity based scholarship programme, potentially providing many financially disadvantaged students the opportunity to receive an education.

At the University Council meeting dated the 2 Mach 2007, I questioned the Vice Chancellor as to how the University can accurately distinguish the financial circumstances of students who may be facing financial hardships. The Vice Chancellor stated that this was a good question and at the present moment, the University is looking at the finer details of this issue and may also follow some of the techniques the government uses such as demography, eg, postcodes, etc.

I aim to continue to question and provide as much assistance and input as I possibly can so that this equity based scholarship programme will be able to help all financially disadvantaged students in a fair and equitable way. There are 19 members of the University Council with only one student elected representative which is 1 vote out of 19, therefore, I cannot promise or guarantee the successful formation of this equity based scholarship programme. However, I promise to continue to question and assist in this regard.

2) Last year in a University Council meeting, I had questioned the Vice Chancellor regarding the issue of available parking to the students. I stated that I heard alot of complaints from students who paid for their parking stickers but ended up being late for lectures and tutorials because it took them in excess of 30mins to find a space and under fierce competition from fellow students. The Vice Chancellor replied that once the Macquarie University train station was complete, the Chatswood and Epping railink would greatly reduce the flow of vehicles on campus and thus, there are no plans to construct additional parking spaces on campus.

Though I do not completely disagree with this prediction, the student population of Macquarie University will continue to grow and it is important to plan for the long term. The University has the budget and available land to build more multi-level carparks on campus. One area we can look at is the space between the N1 carpark and the gym, namely building W10A. This area is large enough for such a construction and can provide adequate secure parking for students and visitors to the gym and the aquatic centre currently under construction. Another area we can look at is the N3 carpark opposite the gym, an area which is also large enough for a multi-level carpark. If you look at the map of the University, these two locations are quite close to the library and other lecture bulidings.

Approval will depend on the acceptance of this idea by the University Council and the Ryde City Council.

3) The Co-op Bookshop is a lessee of SAM, meaning that SAM is the landlord of the Co-op Bookshop in Macquarie University. Though SAM has no legal authority to make the Co-op Booskhop reduce the prices of its products, however, SAM can lobby and exert influence in this issue. As you can see in my candidate statement, I am the current President of SAM and I am in such a position to lobby and exert influence on the Co-op Bookshop. Students on average spend around $500-$900 on books and unit readers every year. This is acceptable if you are financially capable, but not for the average student trying to survive on $50 per week.

4) The "Commonwealth Higher Education Support Act 2003" allowed Australian Universities the freedom to increase their HECS to a maximum of 25%. As mentioned in my candidate statement, I served on the University Council from May 2003 to May 2005, where I had voted with a majority of University Councillors not to increase HECS for 2005. Many other universities increased their HECS in 2005 with the exception of Macquarie University.

I was not the student representative on the University Council from May 2005 to May 2006, thus I cannot answer you why HECS had been increased for 2006 and beyond. Considering the increasing cost of living in Sydney and the financial burden a HECS debt would place on a student for many years of his/her working life, it is sad that this has happened.

I am glad you have taken the time to write to me and I thank you for your questions.

Sincerely,

Victor Ma

Hahahahaha....*sigh*

 

[Kegs]

The lone gunman, single handedly fighting the evil of the HECS increase. Oh, whatever would we do without our fearless representitive, Victor Ma. What a shame John Bransgrove hated the students and so allowed the increase in 2006. At least John spoke to me nicely, rather than fobbing me off with a business card and some bullshit about a secretary.

All that aside, I love it. So bummed I missed the March 2 meeting. Would have been interesting to hear him raise issues at the meeting. Sure they would have been in the closed session anyways.

Thanks for posting Asylum

 

[illmatic]

The lone gunman, single handedly fighting the evil of the HECS increase. Oh, whatever would we do without our fearless representitive, Victor Ma. What a shame John Bransgrove hated the students and so allowed the increase in 2006. At least John spoke to me nicely, rather than fobbing me off with a business card and some bullshit about a secretary.

All that aside, I love it. So bummed I missed the March 2 meeting. Would have been interesting to hear him raise issues at the meeting. Sure they would have been in the closed session anyways.

Thanks for posting Asylum

Ma sent me the exact same response.

I am a person that welcomes criticism that are justified and based on facts, your email has questions that I am glad to answer.

Last year in a University Council meeting, I had questioned the Vice Chancellor regarding the issue of available parking to the students. I stated that I heard alot of complaints from students who paid for their parking stickers but ended up being late for lectures and tutorials because it took them in excess of 30mins to find a space and under fierce competition from fellow students. The Vice Chancellor replied that once the Macquarie University train station was complete, the Chatswood and Epping railink would greatly reduce the flow of vehicles on campus and thus, there are no plans to construct additional parking spaces on campus.

Though I do not completely disagree with this prediction, the student population of Macquarie University will continue to grow and it is important to plan for the long term. The University has the budget and available land to build more multi-level carparks on campus. One area we can look at is the space between the N1 carpark and the gym, namely building W10A. This area is large enough for such a construction and can provide adequate secure parking for students and visitors to the gym and the aquatic centre currently under construction. Another area we can look at is the N3 carpark opposite the gym, an area which is also large enough for a multi-level carpark. If you look at the map of the University, these two locations are quite close to the library and other lecture bulidings.

I treasure and love the green ecological surroundings of the campus, multi-level carparks will have the capacity to house more cars and yet leave sufficient space for lawns and gardens. Approval will depend on the acceptance of this idea by the University Council and the Ryde City Council.

The "Commonwealth Higher Education Support Act 2003" allowed Australian Universities the freedom to increase their HECS to a maximum of 25%. As mentioned in my candidate statement, I served on the University Council from May 2003 to May 2005, where I had voted with a majority of University Councillors not to increase HECS for 2005. Many other universities increased their HECS in 2005 with the exception of Macquarie University.

I was not the student representative on the University Council from May 2005 to May 2006, thus I cannot answer you why HECS had been increased for 2006 and beyond. Considering the increasing cost of living in Sydney and the financial burden a HECS debt would place on a student for many years of his/her working life, it is sad that this has happened.

A maximum of 150 words was the limit that the University allowed for our candidates statements, which did not provide much room to explain our policies in greater detail. Thus the reason why I provided my email to you so I can hear your concerns and opinions.

I have no intention on running a campaign based on lies and dishonesty. Whether you believe me or not is entirely up to you, but there are many issues in this University that requires our attention and we must address these issues for the short and long term.

If you have any ideas about how we can create a better campus, feel free to email me.

Regards,

Victor Ma

 

[iwannarock]

i just realised what victor ma's photo reminds me of........

do you remember australias most wanted...............where they'd have a picture of the person.

but if they didn't know what they looked like........instead of a sketch it was like a computer generated sort of thing.

victor ma's photo looks EXACTLY like one of those.

 

[glitterfairy]

oh my god.

For a second I thought Victor Ma looked suspiciously like my paternal grandfather. Then I ran to my room and compared photos.

The eyes and hair are the same, but other than that my relative looks normal, and Victor Ma just looks too evil with features that seem to narrow for his face. I'll now be able to sleep easier, knowing that Victor Ma and I aren't related. *sighs happily*

Please remind me to vote on tuesday when the post office opens again...