Concern over the Bible Elohim Academy, which some have labelled as a ‘religious cult’, was discussed, due to the group wanting to affiliate with OUSA. They are seen by OUSA Recreation Manager Michaela Tangimetua as being an “extension of” controversial South Korean religious group the World Mission Society of God (WMSoG) and although they claim to have only been proselytizing on campus, there are several instances of them having done so off campus, even door knocking in North Dunedin’s surrounding suburbs. They weren’t upfront with the fact they were affiliated to the WMSoG, something they have been told will have to be added to their constitution in order to be affiliated as an OUSA group.
A large part of the meeting was consumed with discussion about the specifics of the OUSA referendum’s pros and cons. Following this the meeting turned to the installation of CCTV cameras in North Dunedin. Education Officer Bryn Jenkins asked whether President Hugh Baird has had conversations with other students associations, as well as the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations (NZUSA), in order to have a “united voice for students” on this important issue. Admin VP William Guy said we should talk to “OPSA [Otago Polytech Students’ Association] first and then other students associations.” Baird then said “do we care about them?”, to which Jenkins responded, “we should be cautious. This is a huge decision for New Zealand, not just Dunedin.” Baird then said “I don’t care about students in other students’ associations,” before adding, “after our own of course.” Jenkins noted that their views “should not substantively affect it but knowing their view would help,” with Baird firmly stating, “we’ll have no stance until after the referendum.”
After weeks of confidential discussions about the possibility of extending the opening hours of the university’s study spaces during the exam period, Jenkins was able to publicly confirm that St David lecture Theatre will be open to students 24/7 during exam periods and the Link will be open until 2am. Colleges Officer James Heath asked if there were any libraries open for extended hours during exam periods, to which Jenkins said he “would love libraries to be open” but explained that they wanted statistics to back up the need, and Jenkins was only able to provide statistics for OUSA’s pilot schemes that were conducted over the last couple of years.