The dispute over the legitimacy of the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) constitutional board ruling to throw out changes made to the association’s constitution in April remains unresolved and has left the council at a standstill.
The constitutional board ruled May 28 to repeal changes made to CUSA’s constitution at an April 21 council meeting, finding that the public notice required by the constitution to make such amendments was not given.
The motions passed at the April 21 meeting changed the constitutional requirement for the passing of any motion to amend the CUSA constitution, a bylaw or a policy, as well as a sub-section of the bylaw regulating the selection of proxies by councillors unable to attend meetings.
CUSA vice-president (internal) Ariel Norman said she still maintains that the constitutional board ruling to void these changes was illegitimate because the board broke association bylaw by hearing a challenge to an action taken during a previous CUSA year.
Computer science councillor Justin Campbell said he and those who share his view will not back down because they want to ensure the authority of the board is recognized.
“The constitutional board, which is struck every year to make sure that when CUSA council meets and makes a decision they don’t go outside their authority or outside the constitution, is being told its decisions are illegitimate,” Campbell said.
Constitutional board chair and public affairs councillor Michael De Luca said a June 30 council meeting was adjourned to investigate a claim by Norman that she and vice-president (finance) Karim Khamisa met as trustees of CUSA Inc. and came to the decision to not recognize the May 28 board ruling.
According to De Luca, Norman said CUSA president Obed Okyere was not consulted or was a part of the meeting because his seat on the constitutional board presents a conflict of interest. De Luca said corporate bylaw for CUSA Inc. requires the president participate for a trustees meeting to be legitimate or the president’s consent for a meeting to take place if he or she will not be present.
De Luca said that while questioning Norman with another councillor as witness, she said there was no record of the trustees meeting and admitted a meeting had never taken place. He said making decisions without documenting the meeting and providing record to members goes against Ontario statute laws for officers and trustees of corporations.
A motion to strike a disciplinary committee to review Norman and Khamisa’s actions is on the agenda, De Luca said.
Norman and Khamisa declined to comment.
A July 19 council meeting was adjourned because quorum was broken when a number of councillors walked out after the chair refused to recognize three proxies from constituencies different from the councillors they were representing, Okyere said.
A motion to accept CUSA’s budget was tabled at this meeting, though it was not previously presented. There was no opportunity at the meeting to vote on the budget.
A July 26 council meeting was postponed because the chair was out of the country and was unable to attend. The councillors who called for the meeting agreed to postpone it until Aug. 3, according to Okyere.
Okyere said many councillors were disappointed because they felt the chair was not respecting the constitutional board ruling, which voided a change preventing the selection by councillors of proxies in a department different from their own during the summer semester.
