Editorial: Cut the Coordinator

CSU General Coordinator Should Be Impeached March 1

OpinionsThe Link — Published February 18, 2020

Kalafatidis’ mandate has been marked by a series of shortcomings, from his slate’s initial disqualification from the election for cheating before reinstatement, to his failure to appoint a Sustainability Coordinator, leaving the position vacant for over eight months.

According to documents obtained by The Link, he routinely shirked his duties as general coordinator, particularly when it came to his position as chair of the appointments committee. This resulted in the prevention of student participation on the Standing Committee on Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Violence.

With Concordia’s rich history of mishandling of complaints related to sexual violence and sexual misconduct, it is the CSU’s responsibility—as representatives of the undergraduate student body and an organization working directly with the administration—to hold the administration accountable for their own shortcomings and work towards ensuring the university is a safe space for those who attend. Failing to live up to this responsibility is completely unacceptable.

Not to mention, Kalafatidis and his slate ran on a platform of little substance, targeting fee-levy groups with his plans for online opt-outs, threatening their already limited funding. The plans for online opt-out are still unclear, with no current game plan for the program’s infrastructure and implementation.

Faculty equality was a garbage fire. The referendum question itself was misleading and Kalafatidis seemed to have a poor overall understanding of how to proceed afterwards. Turns out, the first referendum question served no purpose, and it will have to be brought forth yet again.

Yes, nicer bathrooms would be nice, but let’s be real for a second. The school has bigger fish to fry, like library workers who’ve been without a collective agreement for over 800 days, and had already been working towards updating some of the bathrooms alongside other renovations, regardless of who came through the CSU.

With the number of by-law violations outlined in the motion, a lack of meaningful projects and his clear lack of passion for issues that actually matter, it’s time for him to go.