After a mere 10 weeks in office, the student senate motioned to begin the impeachment process of SGA President Gallop Franklin.
The motion came as nine senators voted for the impeachment process to begin.
In the SGA constitution, under Title 10 Chapter 901.1 , the student senate may remove any official from office with 1/3 of the majority vote. Gallop was reportedly removed for misfeasance of his duties, after failing to appoint a chief justice in a timely manner.
Aside from the legal jargon, that perhaps even some of our SGA officials can’t understand, let’s skip to the meat and potatoes of the situation. During his short term as SGA president, from the renown speaker series, to his failure to appoint a chief justice that would supposedly affect a great number of students, Franklin has received mixed reviews from the student body. At a school where SGA elections only yield a voter turnout that is abysmal at best, I highly doubt most students even knew we had a chief justice. But, I digress.
What’s important here is how highly politicized the action seems on the Senate’s behalf.
While it is his job to appoint a chief justice in a timely manner, such a hasty decision by the senate to begin the impeachment process is very counterproductive. Quite frankly, I’m sure this isn’t the first time an SGA president has failed to complete every duty under his or her job description. Of course this does not justify Gallop’s failure to appoint someone.
The impeachment process will more likely loom on for the duration of the short weeks we have left, and may delve into next spring, thus hindering the Student Government Association from doing a lot of what it does anyway, nothing.
Instead of engaging in childish bickering matches about the sub-par semester SGA has had, it would be in their best interest to work through this misunderstanding like competent adults.
The process will add avoidable stress and infringe upon the time of all those involved-time, I’m sure could be used to prepare for finals.
So in these last weeks, I advise SGA to reconsider the motion, and utilize the last of their meetings to sort out the complaints, while in turn appointing a chief justice in a timely manner. And more importantly, to work together to figure out how to turn around what has so far been a disappointing administration.
Jason Lawrence is a junior politcal science student from Tallahassee. He can be reached at famuanopinions@gmail.com.