Over the years, student organisations may have grown bigger and in the past few years we have even seen new organisations emerge within the student body. However, something essential has been lost along the way, and that is the identity of some student organisations.
Sadly, years of student activism have not been enough to teach some students a vital lesson that organisations offer, and that is what student organisations are really about. While organising student exchanges, parties, and spending most of their energy worrying about the damn Room Allocation Report (RAR), it is a pity, that in 2017, we still have "active students’ who think that there is good and bad competition. Lie.
Anywhere you will work in life, there is going to be an element of competition and those who try to keep student organisations protected from competition, are living a lie. Competition has nothing to do with hatred, but student organisations are not a fairytale. Competition is what drives you to go that inch further to produce a better product than those who you deem as your "competitors’.
Just look at Pulse and SDM as an example. The level of competition or rivalry which exists between them drives them to do what other student organisations on campus deem as unthinkable. But probably, they’re the two organisations with the most realistic perception of life. While some might consider Pulse and SDM as childish, I personally dare to say that they have been able to produce a few of most competent people in student activism, such as Nigel Micallef (ELSA), Gayle Lynn Callus (KSU) and Brendan Zerafa (JEF).
If we want to see growth in student organisations, it is of cardinal importance that a distinction is made between student organisations. Recently, others have claimed that this should not be done because all organisations are made up of students who work tirelessly for their organisations… blah blah blah. I’m sorry to have to break it to you, but you haven’t understood a thing about what student organisations are truly about. And while collaborating between student organisations is obviously necessary, it is ridiculous to put all student organisations in a simple collective. Organisations must maintain their distinct identity, even if that necessitates being categorised or ranked.
As sad as it may sound, we seem to have university students who think that in order to be fair, everyone needs to be given the same amount of credit, bullshit. In order to be fair, one only needs to be given the due amount deserved, the exact amount worked for. But I guess if some haven’t understood this simple thing by now, they will probably never be able to comprehend it.
And finally, no student activism is not for everyone. Every student has the opportunity to do it, but not everyone is willing to go for it or is ready to succeed through commitment, loyalty and dedication.
