Week 11, or Hell Week X depending on which school or year of students you’re talking to. You would love to spend your precious time perfecting that assignment or preparing for your finals but MUSA still exists and the MSCs must go on. So here’s the MSC #9 recap after five weeks of pain and suffering.

Half the MSC was present and we began the evening by singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to MUISS Secretary Tasvir. Despite the absence of a celebratory cake, the mood of the room was slightly uplifted with the prelude discussion of the much anticipated MUSA appreciation dinner.

First up was the VPs’ Let Loose & Chill event that was held in Week 10. Approximately 100 attendees were present with a total of 15 songs performed. The students released some stress by singing along and enjoying some free food. The response was better than expected despite the rush in putting the event together. Next, Gen Sec Tharshini announced issuing a warning letter to C&S Head Ashley for failing to attend previous MSCs without submitting apology letters.

Coincidentally, Ashley was absent that evening, leaving her partner Sharik to inform of the removal of the C&S Sports Officer by a vote of no confidence in Week 6. Among the reasons was unsatisfactory work ethics especially when planning Monash Cup. School of IT Rep Skyler requested for a justification as to why there was an accusation of corruption against said Sports Officer, and after much contention across the floor, Sharik briefly explained that the speculation came from a particular club of which the former Sports Officer is the president of. Mr Zebba from Student Life has confirmed that the referred to bank account has been dormant since 2016 and is now closed. Tharshini clarified that she and the Returning Officer for the MUSA 2019 Annual Elections found no evidence implicating the accused, but realised there were miscommunications and loopholes between both parties. Nonetheless, he was allowed to run and be elected as one of MUSA 2019’s C&S Heads.

Thankfully, Monash Cup 2018 was deemed a success (total expenses did not reach the controversial RM 90K!) after a post-mortem with the various Houses which included the staff team, Cerberus. This was despite the rainy weather which incurred extra costs to reschedule affected events. Sharik suggested having more events outside of campus where there will be (better) protection against the rainy weather. However, some unpleasant things happened throughout Monash Cup with a bleeding eye during basketball, sprains, fractures, and also a sexual harassment case (C&S has decided to strip the offending player of his medals and certificates). In response to Skyler’s question to see the Monash Cup cost estimates, Sharik informed that the final breakdown would be disclosed in the AGM or one can ask the Treasurers.

The MUISS Heads presented next, highlighting the Country Reps’ successful Bollywood Night and African Night. As always, there were booking difficulties with FMD and some catering hoo-hahs but overall, students still enjoyed immersing themselves into the beautiful cultures featured. The Heads also informed of their Langkawi homestay trip, of which 35 students attended and had fun learning and experiencing the local culture. A major issue was the absence staff members due to miscommunications between OSHE and Student Life; in the end, Mr Silas, the first aid trainer stepped in.

Activities’ Chairpersons Siemone and Ryan sadly informed that the Mr and Ms Monash feature for the Monash Annual Ball will be scraped off as there were too many complications involved which affected the planning and execution of the event. They recommended having large-scale events in hotels as the hotel would take care of everything. In response to SOB Rep Zu Peng’s request to explain the ticket subsidisation (as some students found the RM 90 price expensive), Ryan clarified that a non-Monashian’s ticket of RM180 was subsidised 50% which did not include their share for performance and decoration costs. The Chairpersons also recommended liaising with Ms Parveen from Events when planning big events as she has good contacts and suggestions.

The Wom*n’s Officers spoke of Part 2 to their Speaker Series, where they invited inclusivity professionals such as our resident Dr Joseph Goh, Pang Khee Teik, Nisha Ayub, and Numan Afifi. Though there were some complaints regarding the format of the evening and the panel representation, it was a good first step to having more future inclusive initiatives as evident by the 130-strong attendees. The Officers also proudly reported of their successful Women’s Week, of which they spoke out against period shame, campaigned for increased consent awareness, and had a body positivity open mic night at Recess@Sunway Geo. Kudos to the Wom*n’s Officers for their efforts despite the many events happening on campus that week (Week 8 was insane, events-wise.)!

Lastly, of the School Reps’ reports, School of Arts’ Recreational Trip to Tadom Hills Resort and the School of Medicine’s Relax A Pizza Ur Mind events were worth highlighting. Participants of the former trip were in for a treat as there were many last-minute pull-outs, allowing the SASS Reps’ to upgrade the activity options to include ATV rides. Meanwhile, the Medicine Reps held a successful meditation event with free pizza, where more than targeted number (30 pax) of students were guided through a variety of meditation methods to help them relax.

Want to know more about the details of the meeting, kindly check out the 9th MSC Meeting Minutes!

Article by Elizabeth Gerard