By Sean Tepper
Associate News Editor
This past week saw the Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU) election nomination period come and go with a total of seven candidates vying for five executive spots in the upcoming election.
As it stands, current vice president equity Rodney Diverlus will be competing in a three-way presidential race against independents Mark Single and our very own fun editor Suraj Singh.
The five other VP positions have members from Diverlus’ slate, Students United, running uncontested.
That’s right, in a school that boasts thousands of students that are eligible candidates, only seven people decided to run in this year’s RSU elections.
Remember last week when our ace reporter Scoop W. Gerbil warned you of the one-horse race our RSU has become?
Well even he couldn’t have predicted this sad turn in events.
Now I’m fully aware that Ryerson students don’t exactly jump up in excitement at the opportunity of becoming a member of our student government, but seriously, only seven people?
Here at the Eyeopener, we get more than double that amount of people running for editorial positions, and a job at our campus paper doesn’t pay anywhere close to the $30,000 that a job as an RSU executive position pays.
More than ever the reality is us average Ryerson shmoes have lost almost any chance of deciding who represents us.
One slate and one candidate per VP position is not a choice, it’s a preview of coming attractions.
Sure, if any of the uncontested candidates get more votes against them than for them they will not be elected, but the chances of that happening are slim to none.
The current members of the student union will always be able to hand pick their replacements because they have control over the incoming candidates.
Without the threat of any real competition, the executives will continue to dangle the promises of creating a better environment for students and create the illusion that they are the only ones that care; so the charade continues.
And on Election Day, no matter how the voter turnout is, Students United can claim they were elected in a landslide by an enthusiastic and caring democracy.
Amongst the presidential candidates, Diverlus may very well emerge as the one who is best suited for the job. Heck, I’m sure that the rest of the uncontested candidates know what they’re doing.
But with that being said, if you walk into a voting booth on Feb. 8 and vote yes to any of four candidates that are running unopposed, just remember you are doing your part in supporting the illusion that our student union is selected by a democracy, because at the end of the day there is no such thing as democracy without competition.
No matter how menial it may be.
Ex Emp
In my opinion no other students run against the Students United slate aka “the CFS slate” because the supposedly unbiased CRO that the RSU hires eliminates the competition with bs excuses before the vote even takes place. Just look at last year when mark Single got booted and Donna Ryder got sanctioned for, in my opinion, made up reasons to bully opposing candidates into submission.
I know many students who want to run but don’t because it’s futile. Hey Eyeopener,I think a worthwhile story is in the background of the new CRO. What do you think?
Freeman
I’d rather see a story on an explanation of the rules of the election and a report on the salaries of the executive.
It might encourage more students to run.