Perdeby Tuks se amptelike studentekoerant / Official Tuks student newspaper / Kuranta ya baithuti ya semmušo ya Tuks
13May2013
First public meeting for constitution review
P3
year75issue12
Losing your life: how to replace vital documents
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The return of Holiday Murray
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TuksRowing continues to dominate
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New interim TuksRag committee
Rag interim committee: From the left: Jurica van der Merwe, Miné Labuschagne, Tumisang Sithole, Belinda Kelly, Kiandiko Kasure, Dassie Persaud-Van der Westhuizen, Reneilwe Maleka. BOIPELO BOIKHUTSO AND DANIELLE PETTERSON In April the Department of Student Affairs, along with the executive of the university, decided to replace the TuksRag committee with a new temporary one. The general members of TuksRag usually apply to be a part of the executive committee (EC). However, the current interim committee was appointed by the executive of the university and contains no members of the previous EC or anyone who has ever been part of TuksRag. According to special programmes co-ordinator and Rag officer Dr Rina Wilken, the new TuksRag chairperson, Kiandiko Kasure, was part of TuksSport and was chosen because he knows how student structures work and has the potential to lead the committee. TuksRag held a discussion in June last year where they shared ideas on how to reinvent Rag. However, nothing was implemented by the committee. Dr Wilken stated that the 2012/2013 committee hosted a very successful Procession, Rag Queen Crowning and Pot ‘n Pons, but that the main aim, which is to “reach out and give”, was completely neglected. As a result, the interim committee was appointed. A decision on when to elect a new TuksRag committee will be made once the review of the student Constitution is complete. “As the Rag interim committee, our vision is to better the
image of Rag, move away from the face of being an events company,” Kasure told Perdeby. The mission of TuksRag is to develop students by channelling their energy and their continuous search for fun into fundraising and community service projects. Some of the main aims of Rag include raising funds for community service projects and helping with the socio-financial needs of less fortunate people. Dr Wilken said that she thinks the previous committee inherited a lot of problems that they could not overcome as they were “not strong enough”. However, she said that they tried their best. Former TuksRag chairperson Phatludi Modiba disagreed with Dr Wilken’s statement and said that he feels that they faced many problems during his term. He identified their biggest problem as the fact that TuksRag has no long-term permanent staff member like some other student organisations and committees. “Dr Wilken had been working with Rag only for about a year. I feel that most of the problems faced stem from the top. The communication and understanding between Dr Wilken and myself was not always clear at times. I am not shifting all the blame to Dr Wilken, as I did have my own faults in my term,” Modiba said.
Modiba further said that the previous committee was dedicated to the students and fought for them despite the fact that things such as the Rag Diary and events such as UP Beats Festival did not materialise. Dr Wilken said that there will definitely be a Spring Day and that the committee is already working on it. Last year the committee suffered a loss because the turn-out was lower than expected and they were not receiving any funds from the university. She said that UP Beats is still under discussion and that further decisions will be taken after the constitution is passed. “There will be many changes coming from Rag, I can only wonder if this will be to the advantage or disadvantage of the students. My biggest worry is the interim committee, as this consists of members that were only selected by university staff members and some of these members have not been [active] in any sort of Rag at any level,” Modiba said. Kasure said the interim committee’s mission is to use the available resources to “take Rag to further heights and to achieve optimal participation and development in order to create a holistic student body through the spirit of giving.” Photo: Ilana van Heerden