Why tech? Why not another department close to us? Why not CLA?

These were the questions raised by some members of the department after the executives announced that a joint hangout with a department in the faculty of technology was going to take place at a later date. The bearers of those questions would have preferred a department with a more balanced gender proportion. And if you are wondering how we know that the department in tech misses out on this requirement, then we doubt you are indeed a student of this school.

The commendable 2017/2018 and underwhelming 2018/2019 administrations had just one thing in common- CONGRESS. For those who might be seeing this for the first time, yes, you read that right. The student body of this department has/had a thing called congress. As the general assembly is to the United Nations, so is the congress to Nasels, and the famous venue for Nasels congress is the now-falling-apart tennis bleachers. Essentially, the congress is a meeting that all Naselsites are eligible to attend. The call for congress is made by the members of the executive and it is intended for announcement of major departmental activities, an all-inclusive decision making, creation of committees, and so on.

It is safe to assert that the congress was one of the facilitators of bonding in the department. Everyone, across all levels were entitled to their respective opinions. The congress helped keep the executive in check in terms of how the association money is spent, how events are organized, as well as scrutinize the heads and hands of other members of the department that have been appointed to represent the department in one capacity or another.

What happened?
COVID-19 happened. Nasels congress slipped into a deep sleep, and the death of social events in the school commenced at this point. Everything became less lively by the day and student leaders had to basically run an online administration.
The need for everyone to stay safe and healthy gave birth to virtual learning and interactions in the University of Ibadan and technically almost everywhere. Physical gatherings were prohibited, everyone had to hide behind masks and practice social distancing. By default, the executives of the 2020/2021 administration had to adapt. We recall that the choice of package for the session was decided on the general WhatsApp group, and we can say it was a transparent one. But what was really lost was physical sense of belonging those congresses afforded every student of the department.

What is the point?
If the idea of a collaboration with a department in the faculty of technology was raised during a congress, do you think that it would have stood and passed as okay? If it would have passed, perhaps the executives would have provided a very convincing argument as to why going to the faculty of technology is the best choice.
This editorial is not trying to label the choice of the current executives as the wrong one. Rather, it should be seen as a concern for the depleting inclusiveness and involvement of students in the activities of our association. We believe that one of the very first steps to making students of the department feel among and involved is the resuscitation of Nasels congress. There has to be times for physical meetings and interactions so as to foster unity in the department.

When you see shirts, dinner themes, packages, collaboration that do not tickle your personal fancy, remember, the executives and committees have done their best but Nasels congress is still in coma.