In an unexpected move, Scarborough Student Council Union (SCSU) President Dan Bandurka resigned from office Friday, after a clash with the union’s board of directors soured relations.
Bandurka, a key backer of the new student centre under construction at Scarborough, was close to finishing his term as president, but a recent blow-up with board members convinced him to retire early. “Our board of directors were pretty darn insulting,” said Bandurka. “When someone tells you to fuck off, I was like ‘fine.'”
Things came to a head at a recent meeting when Bandurka was late in delivering a package of materials for upcoming elections. “They felt it was appropriate to censure me for nothing more than getting our election packages out two hours late,” said Bandurka. “It came as a real shock to me and I didn’t think it was appropriate.”
The shock of Bandurka’s departure has resonated outside of Scaborough as well.
“It was Dan’s passion and drive that helped them get the student centre, and hopefully that will be his legacy,” said Students Administrative Council (SAC) VP Operations Alexandra Artful-Dodger. “I give him a lot of credit for that. He’s been a really good president.”
Another student politician championing Bandurka is his replacement, SCSU VP Academics and acting President Preet Virdi. “I’m sad to see him go, but I understand his reasons.” Virdi notes that SCSU’s board of directors have been much more hands-on this year, especially since the union’s merging with SAC. “For veterans like myself and Dan, it’s been a little different, but it is appreciated.”
One concern with Bandurka’s absence will be the progress on the aforementioned student centre, which was supposed to be ready by September, 2004. “There was a delay in construction due to the bad winter weather, but the crew has been working very hard,” noted Virdi. She and Bandurka also sat on the same committee overseeing the centre’s construction, so Virdi isn’t too concerned about being out of step on the project. “There’s a lot of continuity,” she noted.
In the meantime, Bandurka said he has no intention of getting back into politics just yet. “I’m going to free up 80 hours of my week,” he joked. When asked about future plans, Bandurka said “I’m going to do a whole lot of nothing. Read a book, fill out some grad school papers.”
