The Student Governance and Development unit at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) is gearing up for the 2023 Student Representative Council (SRC) Elections. The voting system will go live on Tuesday, 12 September 2023 and close on Friday, 15 September 2023 at 08h00.
According to the Student Development Officer under Student Governance and Development, Andile Masuku, they are looking for 15 SRC members, eight from Durban and seven from the Midlands.
Giving insight on the SRC selection criteria, Masuku said the SRC Constitution guides the Electoral Committee (EC) on the eligibility of a student to being part of the SRC. The SRC Constitution stipulates that prospective candidates should not have a disciplinary case against their name and they should have a good academic record obtaining a minimum pass rate of 65%.
“The SRC plays a significance role at DUT as they represent students who are coming from different backgrounds and who face various challenges on the daily basis. Therefore, having SRC elections at DUT is important as it gives a democratic right to students to choose their rightful leaders who will represent them across all university forums,” shared Masuku.
Furthermore, the SRC elections’ initial process started when the nominations opened on Thursday, 03 August 2023 and were supposed to close on Thursday,10 August 2023 but due to not receiving enough nominations the Electoral Commission (EC) had to extend the closing date to Monday,14 August 2023. Masuku explained that after the closing date, the Election Committee met for vetting and verification process of nominations which led to the publication list of successful candidates.
“We are now busy with Online Manifesto Presentations by the candidates. On Tuesday, 05 September 2023 we hosted one for Midlands and on Thursday, 07 September 2023 we hosted manifestos for Durban Campuses. This is one of the most important elements during the road to SRC Elections as candidates sell themselves to DUT students to why they should be voted for, what change will they be bringing and how will they champion student issues,” stated Masuku.
Additionally, Student Governance is confident that the voting will go ahead peacefully as planned. Masuku emphasised that the process is open, transparent and done in a fair manner as the Election Committee also consists of students who are nominated by the outgoing SRC. Masuku said the results are audited by external auditors appointed through their normal procurement processes.
To prevent any tensions that may arise, Student Governance always engages with the candidates and their observers when necessary to brief them on every process.
“We always ensure that the SRC members become good leaders by enforcing the DUT Living Values among them. This is important because it also guides them on how they should behave. Most importantly, we expose the SRC to programmes that are aimed at developing them in all spheres of life including leadership development skills,” said Masuku.
The 2023 SRC Inauguration will be hosted on Monday, 02 October 2023 at Indumiso Campus, Pietermarizburg.
Pictured: SRC Election Poster.
Simangele Zuma
