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Last year’s GA in November fell short of quorum by 230 people. Photo: Remi Yuan
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SFUO hopes change of venue will help GA meet quorum

The Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) will be hosting its third General Assembly (GA) on Nov. 14, however no motions will be voted on because none were submitted before the Oct. 16 deadline.

The GA was implemented to act as a platform for undergraduate students to interact with the SFUO in both official languages—pose questions, propose motions, and “attend to help direct the work of your student union,” according to the SFUO website.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for us and students to convene and talk about all of the different aspects of the student federation,” said Roméo Ahimakin, vice-president of services and communications of the SFUO.

“We’re going to do our best to have the information circulated all over campus so that all the students can attend.”

While there were two off-campus GAs last year, both failed to meet quorum, and no motions were passed.

The first GA held last November failed to meet quorum by 11 people, while the second was short 230 students.

One factor that may elicit a larger turnout is the change in time and location. Previously, the GA was held off-campus at the Shaw Centre on weeknights, while the first one this year is going to be held in Marion Auditorium on a Saturday morning.

“One thing that we heard from students is that they wanted it to be on campus,” said Ahimakin. “We tried our best to make it happen on campus, and also on a day where there wouldn’t be different obstacles for students.”

Any student is allowed to submit a motion, provided that it is accompanied by a petition signed by 100 students. Last semester’s assembly had six motions, and the previous one had five.

As it stands, the GA will feature an update from the executives, a budget update, and a question period.

Since there are no motions, the only difference if the GA does not meet quorum will be that the question period cannot be extended.

The GA will be held on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Marion Auditorium.

More information can be found at http://sfuo.ca/general-assemblies/