The ANU Students’ Association will not change meeting procedures after a person was able to take part in student representative council meetings while not being an eligible member.
The ANUSA general secretary, Kat Reed, said it was ‘impossible’ to check whether everyone who turns up to Association meetings was a student or not and ‘will respond to complaints and inquiries in a timely manner when they arise.’
ANUSA confirmed in a statement to Woroni that the person had acted in SRC meetings while ineligible to do so.
The general secretary, Reed, whose role it is to ensure meetings of the students’ association comply with the constitution, confirmed that someone who was not an eligible ANUSA member had been told to ‘cease attend[ing] meetings of the Association’.
‘It is our understanding that this is a complex matter, with the student [sic] being unaware that they were ineligible to be a member of the Association until the issue was brought to light,’ Reed said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the University said that: ‘In all instances where students lose their place temporarily or permanently at the University, they are notified and the reason for the action taken provided.’
Reed said that ANUSA had sought legal advice and found the person’s actions in the meetings could still stand.
‘I can confirm that all involvement the student [sic] has had in meetings of the Association still hold true as per section 6.6 of the ANUSA standing orders,’ they said.
Section 6.6 reads: ‘Subject to the Constitution and Regulations, any decisions made by a validly-constituted
meeting is not void by reason only of a departure from these Standing Orders which was not detected until after the decision had been made.’
Reed said: ‘All who attend meetings of the Association are required to sign in using their uni ID for record keeping. While it is impossible for us to check consistently everyone [who] turns up to our meetings on whether they are a student, we will respond to complaints and inquiries in a timely manner when they arise.’
Woroni has introduced new measures after recently identifying a similar breach. U-numbers of students who sign into Woroni meetings are cross- checked with the ANU’s public, web- based directory during the meeting. This practice quickly identifies any attendees who may be ineligible to participate in proceedings.
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