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Day: 7 April 2013

UMSU-SHAMBLES

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in News.

There was yet more controversy and confusion over the Manchester SU elections last week, as Kazi Tawseef dislodged Ellie Bradbury to become Wellbeing Officer following a successful appeal that overturned his disqualification.

Chourdhry Haziq and Shahneela Shehereen, candidates for General Secretary and Activities Officer respectively, were also successful in their appeals, but lost out in the subsequent recounts. The disqualifications of Khaldoon Khan (Community) and Ali Khalid (Diversity) were upheld by a 17-strong student panel.

A Students’ Union statement read: “Following the disqualification of five candidates from the Students’ Union Elections at 9.50pm on Thursday 14 March, the disqualified candidates were offered the opportunity to lodge an appeal against this decision.  The deadline for appeals was 9am on Friday 22 March.  All five candidates lodged appeals.”

Whilst three of the five appeals were successful, only one result was changed. A recount for the position of Wellbeing Officer saw Kazi Tawseef beat Ellie Bradbury by 278 votes.

The newly-instated Wellbeing Officer ran an unusual but clearly effective campaign, claiming to be supported by Albus Dumbledore and pledging to deliver a 24-hour student-only ambulance service.

But Mr Tasweef was initially kicked out of the race after one of his supporters allegedly hassled a voter at a polling station, despite several warnings by an official.

On results night, Fuse FM’s Joe Kearney broke the news that five candidates had been disqualified following complaints of cheating, minutes before the winners were announced.

While some took to Twitter to praise the move, PakSoc, who had supported all five of the banned candidates, called for a “detailed investigation” to ensure there “was no discrimination” against their candidates.

The panel that overturned the three disqualifications was “picked to be reflective of the wider student population,” meaning students were chosen on the basis of factors such as gender, disability, and sexuality.

Their decision will be devastating for Ellie Bradbury, who told The Mancunion having been announced as the winner on 14 March: “I’m so happy. This is a job I really wanted to do.”

When asked for her reaction to the news that she will no longer take up the position of Wellbeing Officer next year, Ellie explained: “I am very upset about the situation. But more than anything I am furious about how the whole process has been handled.”

“I was only made aware of the appeal the night before the decision to overturn the disqualifications, almost two weeks after the initial elections night,” she told The Mancunion. “I find it deeply upsetting that I have not received any information from the union since the recount, nor have I received any form of response to an email I sent expressing my concerns about how the situation has been handled.”

“Considering that the Students’ Union is meant to be there to support and advise the student body, that there has been no concern shown for how distressing this situation has been for any of the parties involved is distressing.”

She continued: “This whole process has been a shambles and deeply upsetting for all parties involved. I will be making sure that the Union takes sufficient steps to ensure that this never happens again. If I am not satisfied with their response, I will consider seeking legal advice.”

Ellie also confirmed that she has not been given the opportunity to appeal against the decision to reinstate Kazi Tawseef.

The reinstatement of three previously disqualified candidates has also sparked anger within the Students’ Union itself. On Wednesday, Manchester SU trustee Sarah Webster posted an open letter on her Facebook page deploring the Union’s handling of the saga.

It read: “The UMSU trustees were not informed of the decision to hold an appeal regarding the disqualification of five candidates from the UMSU elections yesterday. As a student trustee, I have received no communication on the appeal and have no knowledge of how the appeal was conducted or the information presented to the student panel.”

Ms Webster continued: “I have only had access to the information on the disqualifications and appeals that has been available to all students via the UMSU website. I found out via Facebook about the decision of the appeal.”

“I believe that the trustees should have been informed in advance for transparency and accountability reasons as we are ultimately responsible for the decisions and actions of the Union. It falls within the remit of our role to ensure that any appeals process against the decision of the Returning Officer is independent, unbiased and transparent.”

“I will uphold the decision of the appeal. However, I believe that there are concerns about the appeal and how it was conducted that must be answered. I am posting this statement because it is important that all students have faith in the democratic process at UMSU, and that the Union’s decisions and actions are transparent and accountable.”

“I post as a concerned trustee and as a concerned student,” the letter concluded.

The open letter has received significant backing on Facebook, with no less than half of the newly-elected Students’ Union executive indicating their support for the letter. Rosie Dammers (Education), Clifford Fleming (Campaigns), Liam Mayet (Activities) and Tabz O’Brien-Butcher (Women’s) all ‘liked’ the post after it went up last Wednesday lunchtime.

Nick Pringle, General Secretary of the Students’ Union, issued a statement confirming they have “decided to commission an independent external expert to look at our election processes and procedures.

“A separate full written report outlining the appeals decisions, including the reasons for the decisions and the process which was followed, be produced by the independent parties who facilitated the process and published by the Students’ Union as soon as possible.”

It has undoubtedly been an election season in which the rules have come under considerable scrutiny. Some candidates criticised the role current exec officers play in campaigns, particularly after Kaz Dyson publicly apologised for her tweets about Activities Officer candidate Raj Singh.

Later in the campaign, an open letter in protest against the use of iPads to garner votes was signed by ten candidates. The Students’ Union had initially banned them “until further notice” over the weekend of the 10-11 March, before the election’s Returning Officer confirmed to candidates that they would be permitted as of the following Monday.

DEMO2012 VERDICT: ‘A WASTE OF TIME’

Written by Richard Crook on . Posted in News.

It cost £155,000, but only 4% of the public even knew the student protest DEMO2012 was happening. In the end, it made the National Union of Students (NUS) “less credible” and failed to “achieve any national policy change.”

This is the damning conclusion provided in the NUS evaluation into their own student demonstration, in which around 5,000 protesters – one tenth of the 2010 turn out – arrived in London to fight against fees and cuts last November.

The NUS evaluation was released following feedback from over 1,000 students, exec officers, Students’ Union staff, and members of the general public.

In a series of embarrassing conclusions, it admitted to generating only “small” and “limited” media coverage that focused less on the issues and more on the contentious planned route to Kennington Park, which at the time led to the chant: “NUS, shame on you, where the fuck have you brought us to?”

Students angered by the choice of venue will be shocked to hear that the use of Kennington Park cost £5,738.

So disillusioned were the protesters with their own union that NUS President Liam Burns was egged off stage and forced to retreat to LSE Students’ Union.

Despite the enormous energy put in by Students’ Unions – including our own – only 16% of the student population had heard of DEMO2012 before it took place.

Fewer than 10% of Students’ Unions felt it was easy to promote the event to students, with feedback suggesting it was “really hard to sell” and “difficult to tell students the reason for marching.”

But despite this lack of widespread interest, NUS still forked out large sums to support the action.

Over £8,000 was spent on banners and placards, while steward staff time totalled a whopping £24,000.  Rally/march costs came to £18,000 and ‘legal and professional fees’ added up to £6,000.

The costs do not include the money individual Students’ Unions spent promoting and supporting the demo.

Manchester University’s Education Officer Luke Newton alluded to this, tweeting: “If you add up how much unions spent it’s probably a heck of a lot more then that!”

The message ‘Educate, Employ, Empower’ was kept deliberately broad to accommodate for different issues and encourage unions to use the demo as a catalyst for local campaigning activity. While in some cases this occurred, the summary admits the unions’ campaigns “would have happened anyway.”

The key point stressed in feedback was that the demonstration lacked any clear mission and fought no obvious policy.

The result was a vague campaign which, according to one survey response, had a “more negative effect than positive message.”

Responses further complained there was “no ‘tangible’ outcome.” Another added that because there were so many agendas, which ranged from anti-cuts messages to calls for peace in the Middle East, students got “slightly lost in the message of the day and what we were for.”

NUS acknowledged this in their conclusion, admitting they need to “practice what they preach” when it comes to “effective campaigning.”

In the NUS Demo2012 review based on the evaluation, they admit: “The impact of the demo on NUS appears to be limited to an audience whose engagement with NUS was high anyway.”

There were few positives to take from the evaluation, although the Twitter account @nusuk did gain 340 followers, while #demo2012 tweets reached an estimated audience of 2 million.

But since this evaluation, most #demo2012 tweets have been negative.

19 year old University of York student Shakti Shah wrote: “What did the NUS expect? #demo2012 had a terrible route, a terrible slogan, and was generally poor in comparison to actions in 2010.”

Zahid Raja, Swansea Students’ Union Education Officer, said: “The evaluation of #demo2012 is actually hilarious.”

As for our own Students ’ Union executive, who at the time publicly supported DEMO2012, only Education Officer Luke Newton has spoken out on Twitter, calling for “Delegates at #nusnc13” to “vote against #demo2013.”

Last year’s event was organised in response to a National Conference mandate in 2012.

Should Demo2013 go ahead, the NUS are likely to have similar problems recruiting protesters as following DEMO2012, the number of students saying they attend demonstrations on student issues fell from 16% to 7%.

Must See: 8th – 14th April

Written by Hannah Lawrence on . Posted in Theatre.

The Victorian in the Wall

Winner of the Perrier Award for Comedy in 2004 Will Adamsdale brings his new show to the Royal Exchange this week. A surreal and fantastical story which centres on a work-shy-writer whose career is waning relationship is stagnating. After being left in charge of the home improvements he finds a Victorian man living in the wall of his flat. Can the visitor renew his motivation and save his career? Can he save his flagging relationship? A new and original piece of drama in Manchester for two days only.

Runs 12th – 13th April at the Royal Exchange Studio. Tickets £10.

 

The Taming of the Shrew

Directed by Edward Hall, William Shakespeare’s well known classic comes to The Lowry. Following the story of two suitors competing for the hand of Bianca Minola, but are prevented from doing so until her elder and notoriously tempestuous sister Katherine is married. The two vow to find her sister a suitor and the play explores the blurring line between marrying for love and marrying for money.

Runs 10th – 13th April at The Lowry. Tickets £14.    

 

Twelfth Night

Propeller, directed by Edward Hall, also perform Shakespeare’s classic comedy Twelfth Night, a story of romance, confusion and mistaken identity. Set in Illyria an ancient region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea the story follows Viola the survivor of a shipwreck in a tale which explores the nature of reality and illusion.

Runs 9th – 13th April at The Lowry. Tickets £14.

 

Bobby

A new and original piece of theatre from the Just Add Water Theatre Company. A dark tragic-comedy about a boy’s journey towards the fate that awaits him in adulthood, using physical theatre, music and puppetry.

Runs 11th April at The Lowry. Tickets £10.

 

Amsterdam

A work-in-progress which dramatizes a collection of poetry about a long distance relationship between Amsterdam and Manchester. Using theatre, dance and music to explore the idea of absence, attraction and existence.

Runs 10th April, 2pm and 7.30pm at The Contact. Tickets free.

 

Gears of War: Judgment

Written by Sam Dumitriu on . Posted in Games.

For the first time in the series, the adventures of Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad take the backseat. Set just after Emergence Day, Judgment follows Kilo Squad lead by series favourites Damon Baird and Augustus “The Cole Train” Cole as they defend themselves against war crime charges in a military court run by Col. Ezra Loomis.

You play through these testimonies justifying your actions to Loomis. Each testimony is broken down into sections; each section gives you the option of taking on declassified missions. These allow you to change your testimony to sound bolder and braver, but ultimately do not affect the story. One declassified mission has you battling across rooftops with almost no ammo, while others involve finishing the section only using Sawn-offs and Boltoks. The enjoyability of these missions varies, the ones restricting your weapon selection and toughening enemies’ amp up the intensity and add to the challenge. Others are at best lazy and at worse frustrating, the worst offender being the arbitrary time limits, that do nothing to enhance the gameplay beyond frustrating the player.

The incentive for imposing the additional challenge on yourself is that it allows you to accumulate stars faster. Your performance in each section is given a star rating, in order to get the three star rating at the end of the section, you must play an especially aggressive style of play, racking up Gib (Ground into bits) kills and executions. The star rating system works because it pushes you towards a more enjoyable style of play providing significant replay value.

Campaign takes a reasonable eight hours to complete on Hardcore difficulty, and generally sticks to the classic Gears formula. Dialogue between Kilo Squad felt forced and left you longing for Marcus and Dom to return. Cole can usually be counted on for a few laughs but sadly, the banter between Cole and Baird wasn’t enough to carry the story. New additions to Kilo Squad include Paduk, an ex-UIR man who still carried a grudge towards the COG from his experience in the Pendulum wars, and Sofia, an ex-journalist tasked with keeping an eye on Paduk.
Sofia and Paduk are welcome additions to the series, with Paduk in particular having the best lines, both in terms of emotion and humour.

With the new campaign comes new weapons, the most exciting of which is the Booshka, firing grenades that bounce off walls and explode on contact with the enemy. Other new additions include the Tripwire Crossbow, which fires an explosive tripwire, and the Breechshot, a powerful rifle that kills most enemies with one headshot.

Missing from the campaign mode were truly epic moments, perhaps Gears fans will have had their expectations sent unreachably high, but nothing reached the awesomeness of riding a Brumak, or watching a Rift Worm tear through a city.

Campaign also features horde-style objective defence sections, these are a welcome change of pace, and probably the best moments in Judgment’s campaign involve defending your AI from waves of Locust.

Once you’ve collected 40 stars, you unlock an additional campaign in Aftermath. Set parallel to the final events of Gears of War 3, you get to see what Kilo Squad did as Delta squad ended the war. While, additional gameplay is always welcome, Aftermath feels a lot closer to Gears 3 than it does to the campaign in judgment. The levels are cramped, and the pace is slower. Aftermath also lacks the star rating system, which feels weird after you’ve torn through campaign with it.

Gone are Horde and Beast mode and in their place are Survival and Overrun mode. The main difference being that you have to defend an objective rather than just surviving. Overrun differs from Survival mode by allowing you to play as the Horde. However like in Beast mode, controlling the Horde is clunky and doesn’t live up to the promise of destroying everyone as a Corpser.

Competitive multiplayer largely sticks with the classic Gears formula, but throws in a few new modifications. You can only carry two weapons now, and you have to choose between starting with a Lancer or Gnasher, this actually works very well as a way of balancing the Gnasher. One bizarre change was the shift from COG versus Horde to COG Blue versus Red, while it doesn’t affect the actual gameplay; stylistically it feels dull.

You can now customise your weapons and armour with a variety of skins that can be unlocked through levelling up or micro-transactions. While hardly ground breaking, and at times a bit silly, these do add to the multiplayer experience.

Gears of War: Judgment is worth buying on the strength of the main campaign alone, but some strange choices with multiplayer and Survival mode not having the fun factor of Horde mode means that it won’t be remembered as a high point in the series.