Another day another post... :)

Well for starters i woke up late today (12 fucking PM!!!) and as such did not manage to get my assignment done last night... on the bright side i got close to 12 hours of sleep and have never felt so fresh (or guilty!)... Had to get my ass to uni via cab for the all-important union meeting...

...only to find out that earlier this morning Tim had cancelled it! Grrr... $25 down the drain!!! Regardless we had a small 'unofficial' meeting with the MONYX manager and the OSS union mentor. Our views were pretty much presented but without the opposing parties there in the flesh there was only so much we could do, although we did learn a few interesting tidbits of info which only served to confirm our suspicions - man, this is suddenly turning into one helluva Deus Ex Machina scenario - and i'm in the middle! Wonder if other ISOs have to go through this crap...

I swear - nothing on this campus surprises me anymore... ;p

Well the party in question finally replied via email but in such a way which struck me as 'Asking nothing and answering even less'. On the other hand Taufiq has officially informed all the members that as per SOP he is taking oveer leadership of the organisation now that Helle has left... Hopefully we can get some of this organisation back on track with some badly needed policies.

Also, helping Jason prepare his case with the Investigations Officer tommorow at 2pm... He'll be expelled OVER MY DEAD BODY. Hopefully it won't go too badly *cross fingers*...

Anyhow, just to prove that my social life is not entirely defunct, i went for a dinner at a friend's place this evening (thanks for having me over Afra!) with Abe, Moshe and their friends. Wow! Haven't eaten that well (or eclectically!) in quite a while... Where else do you get fried lemon salmon, fried rice, glass noodles with lamb, shrimp cocktail, falafels & chapatis (did i spell that right?) and home-made (frozen) lemon meringue in one meal? Then we relaxed with 'Just Married' after... It was a much needed break for me with good food, good company and a charming hostess - although i feel really sorry for her since she was cooking most of the time while we were eating! Thoroughly enjoyed myself and had a few glasses of wine as well to boot... ;p

Which brings me back to where i am right now - another night in the OSS lounge with Jason (he's nervous about tommorow) doing my assignment... Sound familiar? *groan*

Ok ok... better get back to it. Just to whet your interest (if you're into this whole OSS thang) a reply from Julian is attached - i thought it was very well said and should point out the whole problem of the matter! Hmmm... I really should stop posting stuff on OSS here - its really boring but hey, that's my life people... ;)



Dear Ajay,

I am taken aback by your insinuations that we have planned a slanderous campaign against Helle, Pinky and yourself. This is way out of line and holds no basis for your argument. Please do not let me begin to lecture you on conspiracy. This is more than just a
simple backstabbing situation. The CRUX of the matter is the ELECTIONS. It is as simple as that which I will take more of it after I voice my opinions about your email.

Firstly, we have all accepted and acknowledged Helle’s wholehearted contributions towards OSS. Now I understand that Helle has taken a huge toll on the way OSS is right now because naturally she feels responsible as a Director. It is unfortunate that it has come down to this agonising state. We have to move on and the time is now. But be very clear, this is NOT a ploy.

Secondly, I agree that Jason has acted unprofessionally with regards to his first email involving vulgarities. He has acknowledged his mistake and has apologised for it. The only reason for his displeasure and anger is not because the 3 of you are
incompetent in your duties, but most importantly it is the way the ELECTIONS were communicated or conducted. True enough that you have followed proper procedures and I do not want to dwell on the constitution. Let me reiterate once again that it is not a plot to overthrow the 3 of you from OSS. So PLEASE do not blow things out of proportion and arouse any hatred amongst
us and question our sincerity in our quest for a FAIR ELECTION.

Thirdly, it is very hypocritical to say and I quote “understanding the BIG picture rather than slanderously attacking ones professional and personal capabilities” because if you were committed to solve the BIG picture, this issue should have been put to
rest from the very first email that was sent by Jason and an effort made by you during the past 2 weeks to come forward and solve this problem amicable. However, neither the both of you took any action nor heeded our concerns. Instead the issue was allowed to carry on to this end where anger and dissatisfaction was allowed to brew and it is still brewing. Moreover, can you
honestly say that OSS members have expressed doubts in your competence as an office bearer directly to you
during the course of what has occurred?

Fourthly, since you felt that instigation can cause uproar, then do you not feel or realise in the deep recesses of you mind that by avoiding the crux of the problem is not going to dissolve the problem. By now, you should realise your mistake. And by your conduct, it is obvious that you are telling me any problems from this day forth is better locked up and never to be brought up again. When you intend to take on an executive role as an Auxiliary Director, your conduct is unbecoming of a Director who is suppose to show compassion, impartiality, empathy and due diligence in all your undertakings as an executive office bearer.
Basically you have not taken time to listen and act upon the voices of international students who are OSS members as well. So my question is how can you say that and I quote again “We firmly believe in making OSS an organisation for international students by
international students” when bottom line is you have floundered on just that point? Again your statement is hypocritical.

I have been an OSS member for 2 years now and if I did not feel the same way you feel about helping international students, this email would not have existed. Obviously I feel for OSS more than you will ever know and Patrick (Ex-Director) has even more
loyalty than I have. Moreover, members from the general, main and executive committee have shown their concern regarding this issue. When so many people has voiced their dismay, there is something FUNDAMENTALLY WRONG with it.

We all want this issue resolve as soon as possible because it is weighing us down and need to put this matter to rest with the satisfaction of everyone. It is useless to talk about what had happened, who is to blame, why did it happen or why did you do it. More importantly, we need to look ahead for OSS and foresight is an attribute of a good and respected Director.

Finally with regards to the ELECTIONS, the way I see it and I believe the others will agree is that both of you have 2 CHOICES.

The first is to continue to hold on to your default elected position and stick by the constitution. By doing so you are totally disregarding our concerns for a FAIR ELECTION. If the position is what you want to hold on to, then there should not be any meeting at all because what we want is a fair go at elections. REMEMBER that the constitution is not putting a knife to your throat thus giving you a CHOICE in your decision making. If you tell us that you cannot do anything because you have done everything
“procedurally”, it is a whole lot of nonsense.

The second choice is listen and act upon the collective voices of OSS members. A Director has to act on them for the best interest of everyone and most importantly in the best interest of OSS in the future. Not doing anything about it is a bad characteristic of
a Director.

I besiege the both of you not to allow our views to go on dear ears. Put legality aside and look within yourselves, as sensible and logical people as to why this issue has come about within so many members of OSS. The ball is in your court.

Yours sincerely
Julian