It hasn’t even been Week 3 and yet MUSA has already made some pretty heavy decisions, with some motions taking such a long time that our beloved General Secretary decided to split MSC #5 into two parts. Despite that, MSC#5.5 or I guess you’d call it MSC #5 Part 2 actually went on till 10pm! However, fret not dear reader, for I have persevered through both MSCs and am ready to bring you the freshest news from the MUSA meeting archives.
The Tough Stuff First (trust me there’s quite a few)
This Head Writer firmly believes in bad news before good news, so let’s get most of the sleep-inducing news out of the way first, shall we? Firstly, MUSA bid farewell to Ms Wini Koh who served as MUSA’s Publicity Officer in the first half of the year, citing personal reasons for her resignation (her resignation letter can be found HERE!).
Upon the Publicity Officer Department’s recommendation, Ms Lee Chien Yi a Year 3 Semester 2 student from the School of Medicine and Health Science was then brought forth as a candidate for Wini’s replacement, an appointment which was unanimously passed (although there was some tension there from the sudden disappearance of the SOMHS reps who found their Zoom broadcast cut off halfway as they entered the elevator). Small blip aside, MUSA has now warmly welcomed Ms Lee into our fold and hope that she will enjoy her term as a newly appointed Publicity Officer! 🥳
Elections on the Horizon
As with all things, even MUSA 2022 must come to an end, which means fresh faces, nominations and elections in order to ensure, in the words of our Gen Sec: “we continue to have a successful pipeline for the future of MUSA”. But before that, two things had to be dealt with:
- Approval of the Annual Election Blueprint
- Appointment of the Returning Office and Deputy Returning Officer for 2022 Annual Elections
Both of which went by rather smoothly, with the appointment of Mr Shawn Phun and Ms Aletheia Goh as the returning and deputy returning officer respectively. Both candidates presented their (incredibly) impressive resumes, followed by a short Q&A session to gauge the candidates’ compatibility in regards to their roles and finally a voting session was held. Mr Shawn was appointed with all departments, with the exception of one voting for him. Ms Aletheia’s appointment on the other hand was passed unanimously. They will both be working together with the Election Committee to ensure the validity and legitimacy of the election process and results.
Much Ado About SMR
In light of recent events that have taken place at the Waterfront Residence (formally known as Sunway Monash Residence), the President’s Department brought up the agenda to other Office Bearers to determine whether a town hall was necessary in order to discuss the following items:
- Waterfront Residence’s living conditions
- What steps can be taken by both MUSA and MUM to help ease some student worries
- Addressing the e-mail that was circulated to all Monash students earlier in the week and other ad-hoc items
Several valid points were brought up by both the Welfare and Vice President’s Department regarding issues of anonymity and mode of communication during said town hall. Despite many technical details still having to be ironed out, there was an overall consensus that a Town Hall will be organised on the 11th of August (Thursday) at 6pm, where former and current students would be allowed to respectfully express their various grievances regarding the living situation in Waterfront Residence. However, the President’s Department reminded all the Office Bearers during MSC that the Town Hall was merely a platform for students to voice their concerns NOT advocacy or crucifixion of any party of any kind.
Monash Got Talent
After two year of virtual performances and pre-recorded videos, the Activities Department is excited to finally be able to announce a physical rendition of the Monash Got Talent. Students from all schools are highly encouraged to participate in the contest, by submitting their “audition tapes” from the 22nd of July to the 22nd of August (details can be found on the @musa.officialpage!) The final performance will then be held on the 2nd of September, with a small fee of RM5 being charged for students who would like to spectate the event.
MUSA DID WHAT #5 Highlights
- So so many things to prep for elections (huhu can’t believe our terms is already coming to an end)
- Please, please voice your concerns about SMR / Waterfront Residence regardless of whether it affects you personally or not, let’s try and make Monash a safe place for all :(
- Go forth and shamelessly flex your talent
And with that comes the end of the first MSC for the 2nd semester of the year. To all the freshies, MONGA would like to wish you the beginning of a great journey here on campus! (cough cough we’re recruiting cough cough, shameless self plug can be found HERE). Last but not least, don’t forget check out our S1 Issue if you haven’t already! <3
Article by Ashley Lim ; Design by Chai Ting
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