THEMCGILLTRIBUNE
Wednesday, March 18, 1987
Published by the Students' Society of McGill University
Volume 6, Issue 22
Tenenbaum Wins, Daily Loses By 22 Votes by Jennifer Mori After all the pacing and fingernail biting, the patience of the Students' Society election candidates was reward ed at midnight on Thursday, as the results of the executive and senatorial elections and the referenda were read out.
After a plose race with Randy Flemm ings, Daniel Tenenbaum was declared the 1987-88 President-elect of the Students' Society. W ith 1,097 votes,. Tenenbaum won with a comfortable ma jority over Flemmings' 789 votes with this year's VP External Ian Brodie com ing in third with 521 votes. The stress of
Surrounded by campaign managers, image-makers, well-wishers and friends, Daniel Tenenbaum (centre) celebrates election victory.
red. "I personally feel that moderate in creases are possible, roughly correspon ding to the administration's figure," he said. In the other referendum on the Athletics Complex, 1,990 to 323 students voted to renovate existing facilities with the money collected by the Board of Governors to date if con struction on the proposed site has not begun by June 1989. Terry Sbrissa took an early lead in the VP Internal race although Steven Lightfoot, "gave me a run for the money," Sbrissa said. She won with 1,096 votes to Lightfoot's 939. "The first thing is to find out exactly what I'm do ing," she said. "I have a lot of things to learn and a lot of ideas." Sbrissa hopes to improve StudSoc's image and get more students involved but realizes that this is a "hard task." The Daily fee increase failed by a mere 22 votes. Daily Co-Coordinating Editor, Joe Heath, has called for a re count of the votes but doesn't "feel that it'll change anything." "N o " votes totall ed 1,415 while "Yes' votes numbered 1,393. Two hundred and fifteen students had no opinion. "The results don't tell us anything," said Heath. "It's such an even split that it doesn't tell us what to do. It doesn't give us any direction." Heath would have preferred "to lose by 1,000 than by 22 to show decisively that we pissed people off." "It's the closest we've ever come," said Chris Lawson, Daily News Editor. The PGSS executive w ill not move "W e'll try again next year. We have no towards secession as long as negotia choice." Lawson was soliciting contribu tions are still in sight but, "there have tions for the first annual Daily bakesale. been too many occasions when nothing has happened," Readman said. "W e've sometimes gone to them with quite sim ple things and they've been adamant, saying no all the tim e," he stated. Tanguay hopes to use the recent PGSS motion to put its funds in escrow as pressure, "to prevent stalling tactics." She intends to present it to Senate and the Board of Governors even if negotia tions are in progress.
waiting proved too much for Tenen baum; at one point his campaign people said that he was in the washroom "feel ing queasy." Fie recovered by the time the final results appeared, saying; "There is a very clear cut result. It is clear whom the university considers its true representative." Tenenbaum told the Tribune that, "I feel my election pro mises are realistic and that they w ill be fulfilled." Chris Alexander took an early lead in the Vice-President External race, winn ing with 1,022 votes. FHis nearest rival was Francis Lacombe with 737 votes. The other candidates trailed far behind. "M y main aim is to make McGill part of the Québec student movement," said Alexander. "The main thing is to generate student interest." The results of the referendum on tui tion fee increases showed student opi nion firmly in favour of tuition increases provided that there is an extensive review of the loans and bursaries system and greater student participation in university government. One-thousandfour-hundred and twelve students voted in favour of the increases and 932 against any form of tuition increases while 268 had no opinion. "I'm very pleased with the results," stated Alexander. Tenenbaum concur-
Grad Students Vote To Separate by Jennifer Mori In last Thursday's Post Graduate Students' Society (PGSS) referendum on negotiated student autonomy from students' Society, an overwhelming 96% voted in favour of granting their ex ecutive the mandate to negotiate seces sion. According to PGSS VP (External) David Schulze, of a total 5000 graduate students, 3800 were in the Montreal area at the time of the referendum. The remaining 1200 were in other parts of the country or overseas. "Therefore," said Schulze," only 3800 were eligible to vote and the total voter turnout was 12.4% of the eligible voting po pu latio n." 441 graduate students voted for secession while 19 voted against. Schulze also noted that the majority of graduate students voted at PGSS polling stations, "showing how much they think of SSMU (Students' Society of McGill University)." "W e have received definite word from the graduate population reflecting what it thinks about the Students' Society," Genviève Tanguay, PGSS President, told the Tribune. "W e must have the negotiations now," added André Couture, PGSS VP Administration. "W e would like to get the problem solved before the executive changes." Tanguay was skeptical about the out come of the negotiations. "W e have no indications from StudSoc that they are ready to co-operate," she said. "Students' Council does not seem very serious and is taking the whole thing very lightly." Mark Readman, PGSS VP University Affairs and Graduate Rep. to Students' Council, thinks the constitutional amendments "w o n 't go anywhere" in Council. "I think these people don't want to be members of a council that let PGSS out," he commented. "O u r Council would love to secede," remarked Schulze. "It's the executive who are saying no. Nothing the SSMU executive has done is helping the PGSS executive persuade its membership that it's worthwhile staying in SSMU." Tanguay has voiced her frustration to the university administration and she
divulged that, "P rincipal johnston though a third party mediator would help." This "wiseman" has yet to be ap pointed but if he is, "w e would like to get the negotiations over in two to three weeks and definitely have a Students' Society referendum before September," said Tanguay. According to Tanguay, "everyone in the administration is cautious at this point." Tanguay's remarks could not be substantiated as the Tribune interviewed her after Johnston's office had closed for the weekend.
Heath attributes part of the Daily loss to an alleged unofficial "N o " campaign run by a student claiming to be on the Daily Board of Directors. "H e claimed that he was going to produce a new Dai ly but didn't explain how he was going to do it," said Heath. "There were also unofficial posters that did not follow campaign regulations. More than 22 people voted on the basis of lies." Heath does not intend to appeal the unofficial " N o " campaign as, "the only result could be an annulment of the referen dum results which wouldn't change anything." Andrew Dinsmore, Students' Society Chief Returning Officer, told the Tribune that two separate efforts were responsi ble, Dave Bate who did the speaking and Joshua Samuel who distributed posters. Neither knew "that there were procedures for registering an official 'no' campaign," said Dinsmore who w ill do nothing about the incident. The recount of ballots took place Monday. The Undergraduate Representative to the Board of Governors w ill be this year's Students' Society President, Paul Pickersgill. It was a narrow race between Pickersgill and Arts and Science Undergraduate Society President, Rye Symons, 1,319 for Pickersgill and 1,161 for Symons. As Pickersgill put it, "N ot much has changed/' By virtue of his position as Students' Society President, he was an ex officio member of the Board of Directors gained Dave Bate, Ward Brown, and Joel Savage. The Management Senator is Chris Gardiner and the Law Senator is Shahir Guini.
Inside:
New Music Signs O ff----- ...........P-5 Irate Letter Section......... . . . . . .p.3
Council Denounces Babb Talk, FAEs by Marie-Paule Labbé One controversial issue followed another as Council debated what action to Students' Council reaffirmed its support for the Ad Hoc Committee on take in response to South African Ambassador Glen Babb's unpublicized ap pearance at Douglas Hall two weeks ago. Responsible Research at last week's council meeting. It was resolved to sup port yesterday's demonstration against Fuel Air Explosive research at McGill. The decision to censure John Hale, Assistant Director of Douglas Hall, for The Committee also received a donation from Council's Special Project secretly organizing Babb's visit to the student residence was swift and unanimous. Fund to help cover printing costs for posters and pamphlets disseminated around campus. "Glenn Babb coming to speak at McGill is an international embarassment "Students are hearing a lot about FAE's. It would be a good idea if they had not only to M cG ill but to Canada," said VP External Ian Brodie. He added that information about them," said Amy Kaler, speaking on behalf of the Commit such action undermined the Student Society's policy to isolate the South African government. tee. / Kaler assured Council that none of the donated money would go to the Little "By letting him speak we give him legitimacy he doesn't deserve," said Red Wagon, a çivil disobedience group that occupied Vice Principal Amy Kaler, who also represented the South Africa Committee. She also noted (Research) Gordon MacLachlan's Dawson Hall Office last week. Kaler in- . that " if Glenn Babb, private citizen, wished to speak about cellular mitosis, I would have no objections." sisted that the Ad Hoc Committee is independent and non-political. When Stephen Fraser, Post-Graduate Rep to Council, asked if the pamphlets Council voted to demand a public apology from John Hale to both the Black would "mention any of the peaceful uses of FAE's" such as their function in community and M cG ill students in general. He w ill also be urged to invite an diesel engines, Kaler responded that " if the potential uses for research are am alternative speaker from a group such as the African National Congress or the biguous, it's different," but "that in the case of FAE's, the purpose is obviously Pan-African Congress to Douglas Hall in the near future. military."
Armour Threatens Public Media Battle by Ian M. Harrold Vowing to wage "a public battle in the media" with the Quebec government if it does not increase McGill's operating grant for 87-88, McGill's Vice Principal (Finance) is talking tough, and he means it too. John Armour told The Tribune last week that he had been expressly directed by the Board O f Governors (BOG) to refuse any further cuts unless the government "specifically orders it to do so." Armour said that although he feels Premier Bourassa has "sympathetic con sideration" for McGill's financial situa
tion, "there are a lot of pressures on the man" and so the outcome is far from cer tain. Education Minister Claude Ryan, is a staunch ally in the fight to clean up the universities' financial mess said Armour. The final word, however, w ill lie with the Quebec Treasury Board, whose president, Paul Gobeil has the job of reducing the provincial deficit. To this end, Gobeil has been at loggerheads with his cabinet colleagues in his efforts to cut spending everywhere he can but, like the hospitals last year, Vice Principal Armour feels that university funding is an issue close to the hearts of most of the
general publicand that the government already grave financial standing, more would have a hard time defending fur cuts would be like squeezing blood from ther cuts. a stone. The proposed budget was then ap It was at a confidential Board of proved with adjustments included to Governors meeting last November th^t reflect an assumed $4 to $5 million Armour presented the administration's dollar increase in the overall operating preliminary budget proposals for 87-88. grant. Armour said that Quebec univer These included a 5 million dollar reduc sities have been running "meaningful tion in the 11.5 million dollar yearly deficts" for 5 to 10 years and seemed deficit. This $5 m illion cut, Armour said, resigned to the prospect of deficit financ would be made through $2.1 million in ing for the near future. Reached in Quebec City, Luc direct university cuts add $2.9 in in creased grants from Quebec's coffers. Rhéaume, the Minister of Education's BOG's response was a flat no. The press attaché, declined to predict the exGovernors said that given McGill's continued page 6