Voting for promises that will never be fulfilled, students elect the worst candidates on the ballot.

Congratulations George Brown College (GBC) students, once again you collectively cast ballots for the worst possible choices.

Campaigning on platforms of lies – and allegedly backed by the corrupt and power hungry members previously elected to the board – incoming director(s) of communications & internal (Pranjal) and operations (Jeetu Patel) made promises that are not only never going to become a reality, they show how little they truly know about the Student Association of George Brown College (SAGBC).

But who cares whether they understand the job, if they have your best interests in mind, or even have the ability to string together a coherent sentence, because they promised you rainbows and free iPads.

Well good luck collecting on that; current board members have shown they don’t care about this organization or you.

Now to be fair, only 4.2 per cent of eligible voters actually cast a ballot – that’s 904 total students who voted.

But is it worse that more than 95 per cent didn’t care enough to take two minutes to vote for someone who was not a liar, or that 414 and 474 people thought Pranjal and Patel respectively, were the best choice?

Since May. 2024 when the new board started their term, there have been more issues this year than last. Lead by now suspended executives, the majority of the board have tried numerous times to force their will on the SAGBC. This often came by means of actions which are underhanded, and bordering on the illegal.

Whether it’s refusing to pass the HR manual – because they wanted more power that isn’t theirs to take – or attempting to fire the SAGBC legal counsel because he won’t allow them to do things which would literally break the law, these examples are just a few in the ever growing mountain of nonsense perpetrated by the board.

In case you’ve forgotten, three executive members of the board – Ayush Dara, former director of communications, Erubey Lechuga, former director of operations, and Muhammad Usman, director of education & equity – were all suspended in the last few months for: breaking one or more rules, improper activities, breaching policies, or going against the organization’s code of conduct.

These three were supposed to be leaders, and instead acted on behalf of their own interests.

While the confidentiality of the board mediation committee – the committee that investigated and ultimately found evidence that warranted the aforementioned suspensions – prevents us from knowing details, we do know that Lechuga was found to have been breaking bylaw 3-7a which states “the director communications and internal and director operations shall be enrolled in no more than a maximum of fifty percent of the normal course load for a student enrolled in their program during the term of office.”

Lechuga did not drop to a 50 per cent course load, and it was confirmed by the registrars office that he was taking a full course load the entire time. He lied, and did things to benefit only himself – while collecting a salary, paid for by your fees.

But if you’re a fan of theirs don’t worry, because Pranjal and Patel are there to ensure their work continues.

So students are aware, Usman was accused of working to interfere with the election in favour of the winners; other allegations of impropriety were made including non-students harassing current students, paying students money to vote for a particular candidate, and handing out food and candy in exchange for votes for Pranjal and Patel – among other things.

So, at least we know that only the most virtuous students will be on the board. Again, well done students of GBC.

For those of you who voted for these kids, solely because of the promises on their poorly created posters – you’re about to find out very quickly that none of those things are ever going to happen.

Not only did neither incoming member give any real explanation for how they plan on making their promises a reality, the sheer amount of nonsense they spewed when they did talk about promises, should show any sensible person that it’s a lie.

• The SAGBC will never give you free uber rides or grocery cards just because you want them – these are prizes awarded at events and during contests, and this organization does not just give handouts to anyone who wants them. No other student union just gives people uber vouchers to get rides home, why would anyone believe that a child with no experience, can make this a reality?
  • Pointing this fact out as well, Usman promised to give students who used the Student Nutrition Access Program the option to get grocery gift cards instead of hampers almost two years ago, and look how that turned out – the answer here is that it not only never happened, but it never will.
• There will be no free iPads and laptops – not only because devices are offered already by the college’s Library Learning Commons, but the programs referenced at places like Humber by the incoming board member – the ones where she said students can borrow devices for extended periods of time –  are also run by their respective colleges and NOT their student unions. The most that can be done here it to advocate to the college and ask them to expand their program. The SAGBC will not be buying devices to give freely to students.
• The only ones who can lower tuition are the provincial government and the college – the SAGBC has no impact on this. To believe Patel – especially after he admitted that the information on his poster was wrong – is like believing a criminal who continues to perpetrate crimes, when they say they won’t do it again. Also, use your brains here when he says he’ll bring in scholarships to help lower costs. There are upwards of 20,000 new students starting every year: scholarships help one or two students with a little bit of the cost. Even if a few scholarships manage to come in from partners, very few people will actually benefit.
• Finally there will be no U-passes in the near future. That’s not to say this isn’t possible eventually, but this board of directors is not capable of putting in the work to make this a reality. They’ve already shown they don’t care enough about students or the SAGBC when they decided not to have board meetings in October and November 2024. How do you expect this group to actually take the time – and put in the work needed – to have a U-pass become a reality.
  • Also, hear this: THE U-PASS WILL NOT BE FREE. Students will still be paying for this in their tuition – a cost upwards of $700. This will be a mandatory fee and you can’t opt out. For those complaining about high costs and not having money, do you really want to be spending this – especially if you don’t use transit?

But good on you for believing these promises and more when you cast your ballot, it must be nice living in fantasyland.

To the students who voted for these candidates: you’re either as corrupt as they are, or simply don’t possess the critical thinking skills to ask whether or not what they’re promising is possible. Electing a continuing parade of clowns is only going to hamper the work that SAGBC staff members do to actually support students. But it’s alright, because you have those promises to keep you warm at night.

And to those who didn’t bother to vote: you are as much a problem as those who cast a ballot for the worst candidates running for these positions. Despite what some of you think, the SAGBC does matter and every time you go to an event, play foosball, sit in the lounge, or buy food from the vendors, that is you using SA services.

Services not possible without hardworking boards that actually care to make a beneficial difference.

It was not enough to tell you about the corruption on the board; and clearly it was not enough to point out that things got so bad, multiple members were suspended. By giving power to these students, you are allowing this board to continue to push forward with their unnecessary destruction of this long standing organization.

You’re also allowing people who should no longer have any say, to continue to manipulate and push their agenda from the shadows. You were warned GBC students and you still screwed up.

Here’s a final thought: before the elections even kicked off, current members of the board were throwing out accusations of collusion and the election being rigged… Now that the results are official, how come those same board members have gone silent, instead of running around spouting off their unproven claims?