w ._
March 21, 1985
N etted Gem
‘ The student newspaper of the University of Prince Edward Island.
CObb, Ryan, Blacquiere, Orr new executive
Election tempest settling down gradUally
By Ross Hal-tinger
With 44% of the electoral vote, Third-Year Arts student Gordon Cobb says he is “ready to jump right in there” on May lst, which is the day his term as Student Union President at the
a
The new executive of the
. Cobb
was confident of a victory but admitted it would be a close race for the position.
With an open door'policy coupled with a high level of communication throughout the campus community, says he can achieve positive results.
Student-UniontlTreasunr John Orr, Academic Carolyn Ryan,
take among all the students at UPEI.
“We can’t ignore the pro- fessional studies, I think the best way‘is to work together” said Zakem responding to a question Tuesday.
After the results of the election were announced
avenues would be to keep costs down while providing services.
“Money has to come back to the students there has been a move toward this, but we need a commitment,” said Cobb who believes in that business approach.
Cobb also blieves that the SU executive must promote participation in the Sub- organizations of theStudent Union.
“Constant input by stu- dents is needed to run a government. We must meet their needs,” says Cobb.
Although voting was down
: 6% compared to last year,
the interest level rose con- siderably after the speeches
' on Tuesday.
Allegations by Vice-Presi- dent Academic candidate Kevin O’Brien of violations of the present Student Union
‘ :- : constitution caused a stir.
VP Operations Karen Blacquiere, and President Gordon Cobb. (Photo: Griswold, Information
Office)
University of Prince Edward Island begins.
Cobb, whose named ap-_
peared on 366 of the 836 ballots after voting last Wednesday and Thursday, defeated Bob Hanf, speaker of the UPEI StudentUnion Council, and Steve Zakem, student representative on the UPEI Board of Governors.
’After his formal speech at the UPEISU General Meet- ing Tuesday, Cobb said he
“UPEI has a broad man- date, we_ have to provide while we grow or we’ll lose the people. There must be a sense of balance and respect how it’s achieved is an- other thing,” said -_Cobb during the meeting.
He says the Student Union has to be able to bring stu- dents with differing view- points together.
In the same frame of mind, both Hanf and Zakem agreed there must be some give and
Hanf: 208 Zakem: 172
Stanley: 211
7 Quote of the Week:
meeting, airing his
fanatic-it at;
Election resalts
Cobb: 366 (E) President
Ryan: (acclaimed) VP Academic Blacquiere: 626(E) VP Operations
Orr: (acclaimed) Treasurer ' WUSC referendum: 87% yes
' "Well, I guess what I’m trying to say is that [don’t really have a view. ” ‘ Senator David Doiron at Sunday's Council views on paid staff siting on toré§i§L.Date-4
' profit-oriented
O’Brien hinted that Bob Hanf, speaker of the Council was derelict in his duty by not adhering to the constitu- tion in some areas.
Hanf said after the meeting that he was upset and that
' O’Brien’s accusation “really
,’
hit home, as an attack on
. his personal integrity. The
Thursday night at the Barn by Chief Electoral Officer Tracey Arsenault, Cobb said he ran a good campaign but could have done without the hassles. ‘
Hanf, who was visibly up-
.Lset after the results were
released, said the election was “a wonderful exper-
ience” but would not elabo-
rate further.
In his speed Tuesday, Hanf said the SU executive should be highly visible and should consist of responsible coun- cillors thriving on communi- cation with the student boy.
“It has to let people know who is, who,” said Hanf, who received 298 votes.
Hanf is concerned about rising tuition costs and wants them stabilised. He says there will soon be a need for more housing for students at UPEI as well.
Steve Zakem was the low man on the totem pole grabb-
ing 172 votes in the election. ‘
He wanted to see more com- munication within the Stu- dent Union and the Univer- sity. _
Both Hanf and Zakem agreed that the Student Union Building (The Barn) should be run with a good business sense, but profit should not! be the bottom line. _
Hanf says the SUB could create money without the approach, adding there are other re- sourcestand a more effective
issue O’Brien was referring to was later cleared up in Council.
Meanwhile, more contro- versy surrounded the O’Brien camp as he was taken off the ballot on the second day of voting because CEO Arse- nault found O’Brien posters hanging after an election deadline. Also, O’Brien is not a full‘time student and was thus disqualified by Arsenault.
Petitions were circulating during the second day of voting by some students who wanted to halt the election. The decision on whether or
not the ballots were to be counted hinged on the vali- dity of that petition.
In a detailed letter to The Netted Gem, Arsenault out— lined the reasons behind her decision (Page 4).
President-Elect Gordon Cobb said the CEO has no solid guide from the con- stitution and stressed that it was the fault of no one but the constitution itself.
“No one is going to go through the hell again Tracey went through today,” said Cobb.
At a Student Council Meet- ing last Sunday, a positive step was taken as a request for changes to the constitu-
In a related matter, Busi— ness Representative Kevin Wisener tabled the concerns of a few students who were worried about the actions of one candidate in the election.
Wisener said he was asked to look into the matter of a complete student list in the possession of one of the can- didates during the election campaign.
Wisener questioned the legality of someone possess— ing the list, which contains personal information.
The concern prompted re sponses both from the Coun— cilmembers, the gallery, and Speaker Hanf.
Mike Trainor, former
Posters, allegations, voter list debated
tion from students Heather Scott and Lydia MacLaren was accepted unanimously by Council.
A committee consisting of one member of next year’s executive, two members of next year’s Council, and two non-Council members was established to examine and recommend changes to the SU constitution concerning nomination and election pro- cedures.
Carolyn Ryan, Steve Zakem, Inge Dorsey, Heather Scott, and Lydia MacLaren will 'meet over the summer and prepare a report for Council for approval in the fall of 1985.
In an attempt to stop
further confusion at elections the committee will try to establish a definite role for the CEO and clarify nomina- tion and election procedures for candidates.
speaker of the Student Coun- cil, said that in federal poli— tics, a voter list can be ob- tained only from the office of the CEO, and without per— mission it would be a legal offense.
“The list contains informa- tion that I don’t want any- one to see,” said Arts repre- sentative Tracey Pendergast as discussion on the matter ensued.
SU President Michelle Dorsey stated that is any more allegations are to be made, there should be more evidence.
Hanf ended the discussion by saying he intends to “launch a formal complaint” after he resigns his chair.
Neither the identity of the candidate who allegedly used the document for campaign- ing nor the exact uses of the document itself did not come out at the meeting.
Lock Ness? Lake Louise? No, it’s Lake Blanchard, UPEI, on a slow Friday. And angling for something more stimulating than fish are engineers Brian Thomson, Mike Paulin, ‘\ Craig Williams, Daryl Ford,'and Gordie MacDonald. (Photo: Yomton)