Despite every position for the UVSS election being contested for the first time in 15 years, attendance at the debate was low
Photo by Sabina Mendoza-Brown.
A normally packed and busy Vertigo hall in the Student Union Building (SUB) was host to the annual UVSS Lead Director candidates’ debate on Feb. 25.
While tables were well occupied with students studying in anticipation of mid-terms, the stage space was used for the debate. Notably, several students campaigning for Lead Director positions were absent for the debate, meaning some positions were left with single speakers unopposed to promote their own campaign goals.
Candidates were prompted with questions and given a time limit of 60 seconds to respond. Video of the full debate can be viewed online via the UVSS Elections YouTube page.
This year’s Lead Directors campaign turned out to be exceptionally competitive, with every seat being contested for the first time in 15 years.
At the time of publication, the UVSS has ratified the Electoral Officer’s report and election results, stating all referenda proposals have been passed, and announced the winners.
At least three students who did not attend the debate have officially won their races — Tam Aljundi for director of campaigns & community relations, Mariah Luzon for director of finance & operations, and Maddy Vanderhooft for director of student affairs.
Two candidates who won their positions members that were also in attendance for the debate are Mohan Selvarajan for director of events and Matthew Allen Curtis for director of outreach and university relations.
Curtis is the Vice-President Internal for the Engineering and Computer Science Student Society (ECSS) and assisted to reappoint Dr. Mina Hoorfar to their position as Dean of Engineering and Computer Science.
Curtis’s campaign platform focused on establishing an at-cost grocery store modeled after UBC’s AMS Food Hub Market . His speaking points at the debate focused on funding the food bank via student fees, as well as through additional financial support from the UVic administration and the B.C. Government.
Curtis suggested raising the food bank fee by an “appropriate” amount to cover its current deficit, as well as creating an at-cost grocery story to act as a “middle step” between the food bank and normal grocery stores.
Curtis also discussed increasing on-campus events and engagement within the student community.
“Clubs, course unions, and faculty student societies really are the beating heart of UVic,” he said. “I want to make sure that there is more support in policy for clubs, course unions, and faculty students societies.”
Photo by Sabina Mendoza-Brown.
Curtis echoed statements by his opponent Katie King, current director of student affairs, who described many UVSS’s policies as “hard for the average student to understand.” He noted that many policies, even ones related to the UVSS elections, have language that is contradictory.
Curtis was also asked about his communication style during times of tension in the student community, as well as between UVSS and the University administration.
“The big thing is trying to get what students want but understanding that there needs to be some amount of give between both of us,” said Curtis. “I’m not going to give up and let UVic roll[the students] over, but also, we have to give some to get some.”
Mohan Selvarajan is a fourth-year computer science and business student. He is president of the Entrepreneurship Club and owns a window cleaning business. Selvarajan previously helped organize DipFest, a single day festival at Cadboro Bay Gyro Park, which featured live music, group athletics, and a group polar dip into the nearby beach’s frigid seasonal waters.
Selvarajan’s campaign proposals for director of events addressed building a large-scale “festival style event”, a year-end student prom, per his campaign platform available online, as well as enabling more frequent small-scale events.
“Since student clubs and advocacy groups already have so much trust and respect within their community … I’d like to co-run events and work with them … provide them with funding, space allocation, and actually help them promote their stuff,” said Selvarajan.
“Because there’s so many clubs at UVic, and most people aren’t aware of what’s going on.”
Selvarajan also campaigned on a “mini-grant system” for clubs and course union groups that would respond within 48 hours of submission.
“The main problem is responsiveness from the UVSS and asking for funding [is] it takes weeks sometimes to get [an answer] back,” he said.
Further information on each candidate and their campaign platforms can be found through the UVSS Elections website. Directors are likely to ratify the results at the next board meeting on March 23.
