Melih Onvural
Today in its biweekly meeting, the Student Senate will at last address explicit complaints expressed by several of its members about the actions of Student Body President Whil Piavis when it hears new legislation that calls for his impeachment.
The bill, which is sponsored by 10 senators, cites 21 specific illegal or unethical actions committed by the president over the course of his term.
Sen. Erich Fabricius, a master’s student in economics, has been instrumental in the development of this bill and said he feels he is undoubtedly acting in the best interest of the student body.
“President Piavis has failed to provide the leadership necessary to keep Student Government moving forward,” Fabricius said.
Although the proposed impeachment was kept secret until the bill was filed this Monday, Piavis said it came as no shock to him; commenting that he has felt animosity from certain members of the Senate ever since he took office.
“I wasn’t really surprised — the rumors had been there all year,” Piavis said. “Once I started reading it, I was like, ‘This is ridiculous.'”
After the initial reading, the bill can immediately be dismissed with a two-thirds vote of the Senate. Lacking this vote it will be passed on to the SG Operations Committee where the validity of the charges against the president will be assessed and Piavis will be allowed to offer a defense.
The committee then makes any revisions they feel are necessary to the bill, including both additions and extractions, and finally based on what they have gathered, will make recommendations to the Student Senate before a vote is held. Five of the six students on the committee are sponsors or secondary sponsors of the bill.
Sen. Bo Heath, a senior in communication, is vice-chair of the SG Operations Committee and a secondary supporter of the impeachment legislation. His said he wants it to be made clear that this is merely an investigation and even if the president is impeached this does not guarantee his removal from office.
“There is enough on the table to at least look into the matter,” Heath said. “We have no preconceived notions of guilt or innocence, we just need to see if these allocations hold water.”
Director of Executive Management Jason Mo, a senior in business management, said the Senate is trying to “blow the issue out of proportion” and has been looking for mistakes in Piavis’ performance since the beginning of the year. Mo said Piavis has done a lot in terms of getting students involved in the SG this year and that the record turnout in student body elections last spring serves as evidence.
“Whil is not someone who fits into their culture,” Mo said, pointing to the Senate culture as being dictated by formality.
Sen. Andrew Barnes, a senior in computer science engineering, expressed opposing sentiments, commenting that at least half the senators on the bill, including himself, did everything they could to support Piavis at the beginning of the year.
According to Barnes and Fabricius the real problem is the president’s inadequacy to fulfill the duties of his office.
“The successes that we have had this term in Student Government are not due to the actions of this particular president,” Fabricius said.
Conversely, Mo intimated the problem instead stems from the senators, asserting that many are political science majors who watch television and try to imitate what they see on TV. He said this was not an efficient way for the body to function.
The issue is up for first reading at the Student Senate meeting tonight, and Piavis said he isn’t sure how it will be received. He, however, plans to attend in full pirate gear as usual.