UCLA deserves a full and honest explanation of the activities of
its student government, and I hope with this submission to clear up
what happened at the Undergraduate Students Association Council
meeting last week.
The USAC presidential appointments process is usually a battle
between political factions, and with an evenly split council this
year, it seemed like the process was going to be more contentious
than ever.
As president, I decided I wanted to avoid wasting the
council’s time in bickering over each appointment, so I took
the unorthodox route of sitting down with leaders of the Students
First! party to negotiate with them and make sure everyone was
satisfied with the applicants I forwarded.
I hoped that by allowing them to suggest applicants they felt
would do a good job and by running my suggestions by them before I
forwarded anyone, the whole council could support the appointees,
leaving officers to focus on their work.
This method worked for the dozens of appointments I made in the
spring, arguably the most influential appointments, such as the
ASUCLA Board of Directors and the Budget Review Director. It seemed
like we had a great system, and I hoped to continue it.
Unexpectedly, for this particular round of appointments, the
Students First! members would not compromise on a single position
and left me with no choice but to pick the appointees I personally
believed would do the best job.
Except for one of the 20, all my appointees passed through the
Appointments Review Committee, proving their competence, and I did
not hear a single complaint from any council members regarding my
choices.
Without any warning, the five Students First! council members
announced at the beginning of the meeting that I had refused to
negotiate with them and that I am forwarding unqualified applicants
who helped me get elected. These allegations are entirely
unfounded, as I have made unprecedented efforts to be open to
communication, compromise and fairness.
I have forwarded applicants I saw campaigning against me, new
transfer students, and students I’ve never met ““ all
because of their stellar applications and potential. The Students
First! council members got up and walked out of the meeting,
leaving us without an official quorum and unable to continue with
our agenda which contained additional business after the
appointments.
Some may be tempted to compare this episode to the strategy that
a council member used last year. While I was absent from that
meeting and, to be quite honest, disagreed with the strategy, I
recognized, as I do now, that the “disappearing quorum”
move is legal.
Please know that a majority of USAC is still prioritizing the
student body and working hard for UCLA.
Kaisey is the 2006-2007 Undergraduate Students Association
Council president.