The Rideau River Residence Association (RRRA) continues to fail the electorate, and embarrass the Carleton community as a whole. Over the course of three months, students have been able to witness the shady underbelly of the organization firsthand, and they have expressed the need for change.
Just after 11 p.m. on Feb. 14, the RRRA electoral office, consisting of Jessica Beaudoin-Walker and Zachary Meier, disqualified the Fresh RRRA slate. This was after the team was given a mere three hours to provide an appeal, a direct contravention of standard appeals procedure. The Constitutional Board, which is chaired by Zophia Brobio, then-vice-president (programming), ruled in favour of the electoral office. With a final appeal available to them through the RRRA council, the team proceeded to campaign on voting day and received the most amount of votes.
Despite this, Brobio proceeded to congratulate current president Hyder Naqvi and his team for “winning” the election. In doing so, she has not only demonstrated her bias, but also a complete disregard for the integrity of the appeals process altogether.
The RRRA council, upon hearing the appeal, asked the university Ombudsman to review the election. By definition, a review calls for examination and application of remedy, if required. He found that there were “substantial irregularities” in the electoral process, and declared that “students should decide on who represents them next year” and added that a new vote is the fairest option.
This ruling was made on April 1. Approximately a week later, the unelected executive director of RRRA, Patrick Watson, notified the Ombudsman that due to his understanding of the constitution, there would be no such vote.
Additionally, Watson asserted that Naqvi would be resuming his role as president on May 1 along with his team. It is important to note that Watson is a member of RRRA staff. He works for the association and does not hold any constitutional authority.
Any actions he makes are a direct reflection of Mr. Naqvi, who serves as the highest-ranking executive. Either Mr. Naqvi has lost control of the association, or he is directly attempting to tamper with its integrity. Neither these reflect strong leadership qualities for an Association president.
This trend of behaviour is not isolated either. Over the course of the last six years of RRRA general elections, there have been six disqualifications. This practice has become a legitimate way for mostly incumbent candidates to silence their competition, and continue the Association down the self-destructive path it has found itself on.
Students voted for a refresh and RRRA Council voted for a revote—what more is it going to take to make this institution and its cronies comply?
