Earlier this week, the Ontarion conducted a random survey, asking 216 students at various locations on campus three simple questions. The questions were as follows, see if you can answer them for yourself:

Do you know what the CSA is?

Do you know what the CFS is?

Are you aware of the ongoing issues between the two parties?

The results that we compiled were less than stimulating.

While 190 students knew that the CSA was our Central Student Association, only 45 students knew that the CFS is the Canadian Federation of Students and a just 24 students knew about the ongoing conflict between the two groups.

In an effort to inform our readers about the issues that are directly affecting them, we at the Ontarion have been objectively covering what we think is this year’s biggest issue in student politics.

Earlier this year, student organizers circulated a petition asking students whether they wanted to have a referendum on continued membership in the Canadian Federation of Students. Two petitions were sent around, one asking for a referendum on continued membership in CFS-National and the other in CFS-Ontario. According to CFS bylaws, in order to have a referendum, petitions need to have signatures of 10 per cent of the undergrad student population.

Also, according to CFS bylaws, petitions must be received six months prior to the intended referendum date. The Guelph petitions proposed a referendum to be held on March 29, 30 and 31.

The CFS bylaws also specify that the petitions must be received by registered mail.

CFS Ontario had denied the petitions that were sent in because they were received by CFS Ontario by registered mail on Nov. 9. That is past the due date, as six months prior to March 29, 2010 would have been Sept. 29, 2009. However, we have affidavits showing that a process server delivered the petitions on Sept. 29. The discrepancy here is that the petitions were not delivered through registered mail.

CFS-National, on the other hand, has not yet set a date because they said they are having problems verifying signatures on the petitions, even though along with the petitions, a letter from the university’s registrar was sent verifying at least 10 per cent of the undergraduate body.

Now the CSA has taken them to court.

Whether you realize it or not, the CSA is a member of the CFS and provides the CFS with a portion of your money every year to continue its membership. For each student, that amounts to about $15 every year. Not much on an individual basis, but if you consider the entire undergraduate student population at the University of Guelph, that figure amounts to well over $200, 000. And mind you there are over 80 student unions in the CFS across the country.

This is part of the reason why we were so surprised by the results of our aforementioned survey. Why are we paying so much into an organization when we can’t even piece together what the acronym stands for? Is it because there is no news outlet on campus that you can pick up free of charge every week for updates on student politics?  No. We’ve got that one covered.  The information is there, but based on our random survey, and the number of newspapers left on the racks every week, interest from students is not. It’s up to every student to pick up the paper, or visit the CSA office on the second floor of the UC to inform themselves about issues that will effect them directly.

Apathy is like a disease. If you neglect to remedy the problem in its earliest stages, it will only spread. We want students to activate themselves now to set a precedent for later on in life.  Don’t sit back and support a cause that you don’t know anything about. Get informed and have a voice.

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