UI’SRC: Why Legislative Elections in UI Deserve More Attention

Credit: UI’SRC

Oluwatayo Ogundare

The University of Ibadan Students’ Representative Council is a vital institution that represents the interests of the students. As outlined in Article XXV of the Students’ Union constitution, the SRC is vested with numerous functions and powers. The University of Ibadan Students’ Union operates under a democratic system of government, ensuring separation of power and equal representation. Separation of power among the organs of government in the Union doesn’t translate to total separation of interests. It means having separate duties and ensuring total adherence to constitutional duties through checks and balances. However, the Council has faced criticisms for its ineffectiveness in addressing student concerns. With that, it’s fair to point out that reformation is imperative.

Reformation and Election

In recent years, the SRC has been criticized for being passive in addressing student issues, such as increase in tuition fee, student welfare, and weak in stipulating measures against defaulting members of the executive council. For instance, punishment for misconduct has been limited to public apology letters, which lack genuine remorse and fail to serve as a deterrent.

Some honourable members have demonstrated a lack of understanding of the constitution, evident in their behaviour during plenary sessions— interrupting themselves while speaking, interrupting the speaker and also addressing the House while seated. There’s little that the chief whip can do when members fail to comply with orders. Coming late to sittings and walking out at will have become habitual among members. Some attend sitting at will because “they’re students too.” I mean, who wants to jeopardise his or her education over mere legislative sittings?

This calls for reformation of the Council and one of the ways this can be done is through election. Reformation, in this regard, is not about checking the number—adding or reducing the number of honourables; it’s about making sure only qualified and competent members clinch the seats at the SRC hallowed chamber. A lot of these incompetent honorables won and are still there because they avoid public scrutiny during the electioneering process. During elections, we largely focus on the aspirants vying for the executive offices, ignoring the aspirants for the legislative council, and thereafter, producing underperforming members in the SRC.

Most of these honourable members hide under the cloak of the executive election, thereby limiting their interactions with students. The students should not be reluctant to interrogate aspirants when they come canvassing for support and affirmation. We must be able to test their knowledge in the provisions of the constitution, their evaluations of the current administration, and how vast they are in recognizing defects in any administration. It’s high time we shift attention to the election into the Council because we can only get it right when the qualified aspirants emerge.

Also, another way to ensure reformation is through organising workshops for aspirants who are interested in being members. In a discussion with an honourable member of the SRC, he acknowledged that a reform is needed in the Council and one of such ways is through seminars and workshops for people who are passionate about representation. He emphasised that the workshop should be aimed at walking them through the duties of the legislative arm and how they can contribute to the success of their constituencies. Furthermore, attendance in parliamentary sittings as observers should be a requisite for membership. He explained that this would make them aware of the proceedings and how everything is being done.

The Need for Public Awareness

Being alive is one thing; being known to be alive is another. When you interact with students across different levels, many ask questions like, “What is the SRC? What do they do? What’s it all about?” This clearly indicates that the SRC has yet to establish a visible presence among the students. Last year, during an interview conducted by the Queen Elizabeth II Hall Press Organisation with the then-majority leader, she mentioned that of the twenty (20) slots given to Queenites, only sixteen (16) showed interest at first out of over two thousand (2000) students living in the Hall, with students in higher levels asking what the SRC is all about. If they had been aware of the operations of the Council right from inception, it would have been a different narrative. The lack of awareness of the Council is also evident in the number of observers present in each sitting. The low number of observers is concerning and it raises questions about whether the SRC is truly effective in its responsibilities.

That being said, there are different strategies the Students’ Representative Council can put in place to increase their awareness and operations in the students’ community. One of the ways includes utilizing the power of social media platforms to post regular updates about SRC activities. Calling for timely Congress, holding conversations through twitter space and other mediums to discuss issues revolving around policies affecting students should not also be overlooked. In addition, conducting regular surveys and holding general meetings where students can engage with SRC members and discuss pressing issues is another idea. Collaborating with student organisations and clubs in order to promote SRC activities and participating in campus events like the Freshers’ week to introduce students to the activities of the SRC and enlighten the students on how they operate. All these put together will work tremendously in raising a significant level of awareness among the public.

It should be noted that the purpose of consistently spotlighting the Students’ Representative Council is not to project the council in a negative light, but to bring to the awareness of the students the functions of the SRC and how this institution, if effective, can work towards the absolute representation of the students both within and beyond the University of Ibadan.