USG faces first elected officer resignation for the year

FAST2011 Legislative Assembly (LA) representative Wendy Peñafiel submitted her letter of resignation to Chief Legislator Patrick Kahn last September 25.

A former LIA-COM student, Peñafiel dropped her liberal arts program, opting to pursue solely her business degree.

In compliance with the requirements of the Office of the University Registrar that “All undergraduate students are required to complete at least two terms of residency in the degrees that they are enrolled in before graduation,” Peñafiel can no longer serve in the Arts College Government (ACG). Additionally, according to the resolution regarding her resignation filed in the LA floor, she is deemed, “Ineligible to be an elected officer for the College of Liberal Arts.”

Peñafiel shared her reasons for stepping down as an LA representative in her resignation letter obtained by The LaSallian. In her letter, she cites that she wanted to graduate earlier than originally planned, so that she can pursue a law degree.

“My venture in the University Student Government (USG) is undoubtedly an object of overwhelming gratitude, however, it is a bittersweet interference, as by virtue of prerogative, that I have concluded to take on a bigger venture for a bigger community — to pursue legal studies instead of completing a double degree,” Peñafiel’s letter states.

The LA immediately called for a session to discuss the said resignation and the process of replacing the former FAST2011 LA representative. “Special rules are adopted on a case-by-case basis for all resignations,” Kahn mentions.

In Peñafiel’s case, her resignation must be first brought to the LA floor and a resolution to approve the resignation must be motioned. This happened during the October 3 session. According to FAST2011 Batch President Pam Bama, when the resolution was approved, she immediately talked to the chairpersons of the different committees under her unit. She asked them to gauge their knowledge of the responsibilities of an LA representative, and whether they are willing to step up and take Peñafiel’s position.

The replacement officer, according to the assembly’s resignation guidelines, “should be from the same college and year level of the vacating officer, currently enrolled in any undergraduate degree in the college, and should have completed at least two full terms in the same college.” The unit’s secretary and treasurer were the two replacement candidates shortlisted.

An ad hoc replacement committee, composed of Arts College Government President Vjohn Dizon, FAST2011 Batch President Pam Bama, and Batch Vice President Gem Ausa, was formed to select who among the two candidates could best actualize the goals and responsibilities Peñafiel left. With that in mind, the ad hoc board unanimously voted for Viktor Kapunan as the replacement candidate.

In their October 10 session, the LA approved the appointment of Kapunan as Peñafiel’s replacement, and the resolution was effective immediately.