Wednesday, May 6, 1998
Internal Vice President
IVP: P.J. Gagajena
One of the chief duties of the internal vice president’s office
is to improve the quality of student life and facilitate the
relationship between student organizations and the council. P. J.
Gagajena’s understanding of the IVP’s role in student government
and his commitment to student welfare convinced The Bruin that he
is the best choice.
Although not the ideal candidate, Gagajena proved himself to be
more knowledgeable and experienced than his opponent, Paul Mim
Mack. The Bruin felt that, even if the rest of the Praxis slate did
not win, Gagajena would have the strength of conviction to fight
for what he believed in and take a firm stand on issues. Just as
important, he expressed a willingness to coordinate his efforts
with the other offices – regardless of their slate – and a
determination to follow through with his plans.
Gagajena’s platform and objectives were clear and realistic,
with a strong focus on empowering and educating students. Among his
goals, Gagajena proposes to continue and expand the Speak Up!
program, increase student activism through grassroots organizing,
help coordinate the Action Team – a group of student trainers who
would help student organizations recruit, retain and strengthen
their membership and infrastructure. He also plans to hold a series
of workshops, such as making the transition from dorms to
apartments, to help improve the quality of student life. Gagajena
will also concentrate his efforts on issues of housing and
transportation.
The major weakness in Gagajena’s platform was his stance on the
privatization of UCLA. While Gagajena described the AT&T logo
on the new BruinCards and a recent attempt by the Turkish
government to endow a Turkish Studies chair as moves toward
privatization, a fuller understanding of the issue would have
addressed corporate involvement in daily student activities.
Nonetheless, Gagajena’s focus on students, his prior experience
with various advocacy groups and Samahang Pilipino, and his clear
understanding of the IVP’s role on council make Gagajena the better
choice for IVP.