SGA senate enacts amendment on impeachment, removal of officers

On Tuesday, Nov. 21, the Southern University Student Government Association Senate voted to enact an amendment to the bylaws of the constitution concerning the impeachment and removal of elected officials.
Junior Class Senator and Senate President Pro-tempore Carey Ash introduced the “Good Housekeeping Amendment,” a bill that would make “any elected or appointed official of the Student Government who has undergone the process of Impeachment and Removal, and as a result of such proceedings, was removed from office ineligible to qualify for or hold any other elected or appointed SGA office during the remaining time of his or her undergraduate tenure.”
According to Ash, prior to this amendment, an impeached official was able to run in the next semesters’ election. Ash saw this as an issue that needed immediate attention.
“When I looked at the Student Government’s policy on impeachment and removal, there was nothing stopping an impeached and removed officer of the SGA from returning to the Student Government, and this made no sense,” Ash said.
This amendment comes on the heels of an investigation of the misappropriation of funds of the Association for Women Students that has recently been halted by the judiciary branch of the SGA.
When asked whether the drafting of this bill had anything to do with the AWS investigation, Ash said “No, not exactly,” but rather “to ensure the Student Government in the short run and keep SGA clean in the long run.”