Spring Break
Congressional candidate visits A.S. meeting
John Myers
Daily Staff Writer
"I'm taking a special interest in the university," Chukwu said. "I will go to Washington and fight to make sure your school gets all the grounds available to get all possible advantages."
Chukwu said he is running for Congressional District 15, the district in which SJSU resides.
Chukwu said his platform is centered around jobs and education, with those two areas being the keys to a brighter economy.
"I am pro-business, pro-jobs and pro-education," Chukwu said. "You would be happy having friends like me represent you."
Chukwu talked about his life in both the United States, where he was born, and Nigeria, where he grew up, citing life experiences as encouragement for students to stay in school and live their dreams.
"(When) I came back to the United States, I was told not to seek a job as an aerospace engineer because of my background and accent," Chukwu said. "I told (the Lockheed Martin Corp. vice president's office) about my dream to be an aerospace engineer, and I was hired on the spot. Believing in yourself is the way to succeed."
Chukwu said that he would like to come back to speak with more students while he is campaigning.
"If you give me the opportunity, you'll see me here every day," he said.
A.S.'s Wednesday agenda called for a vote to repeal Act 77, a legal act in the "A.S. Bylaws, Rules of Procedures, and Acts" that would have defined the legislative branch's duties and restrictions, and to replace Act 77 with Rule III, which would serve the same purpose but at a higher authority level than an act, Director of Community Affairs Pearl Yuan said.
"It fits better in with the rules and procedures," Yuan said. "Acts are more about committees."
Director of Governing Affairs Huy Tran moved to amend the rule to create a section that would name the director of Governing Affairs the chair of the government's Rules Committee, a committee which reviews all of the board's actions for conflicts with existing rules and bylaws.
"This has been traditional, but it was never written down," Tran said.
A.S. President Arash Shokouh disagreed with the motion, stating it was more important to find an experienced person to serve as the committee's chair.
"That position comes down to experience," Shokouh said. "The Rules Committee requires you to understand the A.S. and its bylaws."
When carried to a vote, the amendment was defeated.
Tran then proposed another amendment, naming the director of Faculty Affairs as chair of the University Events Committee.
"We already passed this as an act," Tran said. "We should stay in compliance with all of the government documents."
A.S. Vice President Alice Lee carried the amendment to a vote, and although the amendment passed, it is still pending legal counsel from the Rules Committee, she said.
The original motion for the A.S. to adopt Rule III passed unanimously.
Daily Staff Writer Michelle Ochoa contributed to this article.
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