Sara Dube, Acting President of the Oxford Union, has called an emergency committee meeting looking into the controversy surrounding the last few weeks at the Union.
In a notice posted to members on Wednesday morning, Dube wrote that the Standing Committee would on Thursday morning be looking into:
- Meetings with disability advisory services
- Professional review of staff and training
- Equality training for staff and committee
- Complaints process
President Brendan McGrath resigned on Tuesday evening, after being widely condemned for his treatment of Ebenezer Azamati, a blind postgraduate student, with the events attracting scrutiny by international media and numerous politicians.
As a result of McGrath’s resignation the President-Elect Sara Dube is appointed as Acting President, and will continue for the remainder of Michaelmas and into Hilary term. Dube has yet to make a public statement on the ongoing events, and how she wishes to address the controversy in her tenure as President.
Hatwell and Nwamaka Ogbonna, President of the Oxford University Africa Society, told Cherwell: “We are glad that the President, Mr Brendan McGrath, has made the right decision to resign.
“We are aware there is still much more work to be done. The Union has still not publicly apologised for the incident or arranged for an investigation.
“The new Acting President, Sara Dube, must immediately do so. We will continue to push for meaningful reform and look forward to discussing this with the Acting President.”
Helen Mountfield, a QC and Principal of Mansfield College, has been representing Azamati in the ongoing proceedings. She commented that there were still ‘failings’ that needed to be addressed. Mountfield and Azamati have yet to announce whether they will pursue legal action against the society.
