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There is something rotten in the state of Denmark. Or at least in our state-overseen governing body of students here at the university. After reading this issue, in which we outline for you, dear reader, the multitude of ways corruption, ineptitude and downright dirty dealings have seeped into student government, you will not only be sickened but should be moved to anger and action.
The ASUO Executive’s decision to suddenly fire former controller Justin Sibley is possibly the most stark and startling example of little people with big egos and official titles attempting to inflict upon the rest of the world the order they desire. In this case even the most superficial of examinations will find that not only was Sibley the most efficient and personable controller in the office — he was praised alike from his coworkers, student-funded groups he aided ranging from the Black Student Union to ASUO Legal Services and the LGBTQA, as well as the administration's accounting department — but he was fired because he was willing to legally answer questions from inquiries regarding the misuse of student funds by groups on campus.
Nilda Brooklyn and Joy Nair originally claimed they fired Sibley because he didn’t fit in well with the other controllers and there were problems with his work. However, Student Senate President Peter Watts has said he will testify in a Constitution Court case that Nair confided in him that there were no problems with Sibley’s work or personal skills — she even went so far as to say she liked him personally — but the problem was that they couldn’t have staff members “leaking backdoor information to the Commentator,” and that he wasn’t adequately protecting the student fee.
That is a buzz term veteran students understand to mean that Sibley was unwilling to cover up illegal activities by student groups on the off chance that the state would find the motivation to institute some reasonable control of the millions of dollars in student incidental fees collected and spent on campus every year.
Deeply at the heart of this issue is the abuse of power and the student fee process by student leaders and student-funded groups such as the Vietnamese Student Association and MECHA, the Mexican student group on campus. Both were just the most recent examples of grotesque mismanagement and galling disregard for state law, as the former is rumored to have had a director spend ASUO money on Nair (somebody's wearing short shorts all the way to the bank) and the latter buying a number of items clearly intended for personal use.
Next, look to the case of Student Senator Dominique Beaumonte, who made a spectacle of himself and further impugned the already diminutive stature of the most ridiculous of the three branches of the ASUO's Terror Triple Team. 'Nique took it upon himself to cast aside the apparently outmoded style of MLK's peaceful protest when he ran up against his own form of modern day oppression and instead chose to deface EMU property and stage a sit-in in the EMU Computing Center until he was threatened with the possibility of being removed by city police. You may wonder what victimization he encountered, but you needn't look further than the EMU CC's policy to disallow the use of instant messaging services, an attempt to make the center more accommodating to those with actual work.
The People
Originally this magazine had made the editorial position to keep the names of the ASUO Executive out of print as much as possible as a small but satisfying attempt to withhold the very attention that the two females crave the most. However, as they have crossed the line from politically-active leaders into truly despicable politicians, it is now time to name Nilda Brooklyn and Joy Nair for what they really are: two sad girls at the apex of their lives attempting to do everything within their meager power to hold on just one more day to the illusory glory that has never existed and will never appear.
But they are not the only individuals within the incestuous family tree of the student government. Long-time money guru Jennifer Creighton has done as much as she can through her knowledge of the money process to hide the truth about the illegal deeds of student groups because of her deep-seeded belief in the time-tested mantra of "student control over student fees."
But she has also circumvented other rules and made questionable hires under her authority. David Jaimes, he of the offending MECHA group, quit his position as a director of the group after the financial transgressions came to the attention of those who would in the end attempt to cover it up. Needing to cover the lost income, he turned to Creighton to hire him as her assistant. Did she go through the steps outlined in the student government's bible, the Green Tape Notebook? No, claiming her pseudo-administration position didn't require following student guidelines. One can only suppose that none of this hiring business has anything to do with Jaime's marital engagement to the head controller, who also happens to be a friend and co-worker to Creighton.
The Problem
Every year an informed observer can find something wrong within the ASUO, ranging from a small procedural gaffe to a slightly more irreverent attempt to subvert the will of the students through a special election. But never has such a crescendo of disregard for state law, common decency in hiring and unabashed disdain for basic fairness rocked the ASUO this early in the year.
The root of the problem is that those who are supposed to be carrying out the will of the student body are instead focused solely on their own selfish drives for power and an attempt to make sure student fees are never regulated by anyone but their would be corrupt followers.
The Solution
Unfortunately, when things get bad enough, it is time for heads to roll. The ConCourt should hear Sibley’s grievance and remove Brookly and Nair.
• The student senate should immmediately kick out a member who acts like an ill-mannered buffoon. If they don't, the Constitution Court should. And if the ConCourt sends it back to the body, kick him out again. This manner of behavior is ridiculous and shouldn't even waste the time of those on campus.
• Regarding the misuse of student fees, it is time for the administration to take a more proactive role in insuring that the appropriate laws are being executed and protected. Clearly there is no interest by those in power, from the two-headed Hydra of Brooklyn/Nair to UberController Creighton, to act responsibly, so it is up to more grown up and serious individuals to take charge.
• The employment of Jennifer Creighton must be re-examined. No student weilds more power for less effective causes than Creighton, who has also demonstrated through the Sibley incident that she can act quite unprofessionally.
The ConCourt and Senate should investigate and take seriously the wrongful termination of a good employee, and the greater problem of some in student government believing they are above the ethical and legal standards that their roles demand.
If decisions are handled right and jobs taken seriously, Brooklyn and Nair won’t be long for political office and the ASUO can be returned to more professional hands.
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