Editorial 2

I wrote this editorial after an unsuccessful round of SRC elections- quorum had not been reached for the executive committee to be voted in: Student apathy at its highest...but can you blame us for not voting? read on and decide for yourself!

I am going to sound like a bit of a stuck record here but I can’t resist talking about the SRC again. I hope we can elect a new SRC and get it over with or will we be third time lucky? To turn a phrase, “They [the SRC] are so useless they can’t even get themselves out of power” I wish I could take credit for saying that but alas I can’t.

We have trapped ourselves in our own apathy. Last year we elected, if their performance record is anything to go by, a stupendously useless bunch of individuals to represent us. We made decisions which were not informed and we are now paying the price. So why didn’t we get quorum last time? The confidence in the SRC had fallen so much that it was enough to turn you apathetic, why bother voting for people who seemingly only want to add another thing to their CVs? But as I said in my last editorial, the blame can’t be placed on the SRC only- we have to look at who voted them in and those people are you and me friends. The question that arises at this point is doe we need an SRC? Is it an outdated structure? I don’t dispute that we need to be represented but then it must be clear we are actually being represented. To the newly elected SRC I say: learn from the mistakes of the past, restore confidence and show us that you are actually doing something for us. But that’s enough SRC bashing for now.

I feel that one of the jobs journalists have is to demystify leaders, politicians and sometimes even celebrities. To this end we have for you on page five, an interview with the Dean of Students, Dr Moosa Motara. While I am not saying that Dr Motara falls into any of the abovementioned categories of person, he is still the person everyone seems to blame when something goes wrong. We are very quick to blast admin about any issue we have under the sun and yes, most of the time (I certainly feel) the grievance falls under their sphere of influence so the complaint is justified. Yet admin still remains wrapped in a mystical cloud of public relations and closed door meetings, the interview on page five serves to lift that cloud a little.

As I sit here writing this there is a massive banging going on downstairs, the sound of the Union in the throes of refurbishment. As you may have noticed, our front page story is about just that. I think Mike Smurfwaite sums it up well when describes the Union as nothing more than an “archaic shell.” It has certainly been this way in the two years I have been here and the refurbishment looks to be very positive step as, to coin a phrase, “if you build it, they will come.” But of course that remains to be seen.

This week, African Affairs (page nine) leads with a story on the Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) on campus which is situated opposite Smuts. Many a time I have walked past the sign at the front of the building (mostly after a big night out) and peered at it wondering what they actually do in there. Go to page nine to find out.

I hope you enjoy reading this week’s edition look out for our exam edition in two weeks, bye for now.