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Men overboard
A good captain is supposed to be the last one to abandon ship, and to help his crew weather any storm.
Justin Brown’s resignation as president of the General Student Senate has left the rest of the senators without a leader in a critical time of transition. Coincidentally, seven other senators resigned at the same time, leaving just 18 senators in the 35 available seats.
Obviously something isn’t going well, or the senate and its membership would not be in this situation. Student Government leaders need to take a long hard look at their organization and get to the root of the problem before more senators follow Brown’s lead and jump ship.
Departing members are also being vague about their reasons for quitting, leaving students to wonder what really is going on within Student Government. What sort of crisis situation does it take to cause eight members of the staff, including the second-in-command, to throw in the towel? Members of the senate should be taking responsibility for their financial woes and internal conflicts.
Problems are not fixed by a complete staff turnover and inexperienced bodies filling the vacancies. It’s the senate’s job to represent us, the student body, and to fix the problems that arise within the organization. New senators coming in will now be faced with the daunting task of cleaning up the mess the more experienced members of the senate have left behind. More time will need to be spent resolving internal problems and consequently, taking more time away from serving the student body.
Like the famous saying goes, a real leader faces the music, even if he doesn’t like the tune. That Brown and the senators who resigned have abandoned the students during a time when GSS is in a vulnerable financial state is bad form. If Student Government wants to overcome this obstacle, the remaining representatives need to band together, see it through and do the best they can to meet the financial needs of student groups on campus. That is, after all, why they were elected.
