Members of the Oxford Union Society have voted against the no-confidence motion in President Moosa Harraj. 829 members voted against the motion, while 449 members expressed no confidence in the President.
The motion of no confidence was posted on Friday 17th October, the day before the vote of no confidence in President-Elect George Abaraonye, and gathered the necessary 150 signatures.
Will Lawson, Secretary’s Committee member, told Cherwell: “I moved the motion because I was shocked at what the Union has become in the last two terms. In that time, the President has abused his power, disregarded the democratic process, and has suppressed the voices of those who speak out against him.”
President Harraj denied these allegations. He told Cherwell: “I am grateful to the members for once again reaffirming their trust in me. To the nearly two-thirds of members who voted to express their confidence in me, I am exceptionally grateful, and to the members who voted against me, I will do my best to address your concerns and hope to win you over with more hard work, better events, and a Union that is more than your money’s worth.
“I have worked tirelessly over the summer to deliver an incredible term card and have renewed zeal and enthusiasm to bring that vision to life.”
Proxy voting for any and all members was allowed for the poll again. The procedure was first reintroduced for President-Elect George Abaraonye’s vote of no confidence after it was last used in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Harraj’s vote of no confidence comes amid a number of resignations from the Senior Appointed Committee, including the Deputy Director of Press. Among reasons for her resignation, she cited “bullying behaviour” and “horrifying” working environment.
The Deputy Director of Press told Cherwell: “As someone who was once one of Moosa Harraj’s biggest public supporters, I have come to the realisation that he does not believe in the principles of free speech and democracy.”
Other Union members publicly expressed their support for Harraj following the motion, with the Union’s Librarian telling Cherwell: “Serving as the only female officer this term and as the vice-president, Moosa is the kindest and most hardworking President I have seen who has not only supported me but countless of other members of committee to ensure our time in the Union is as fulfilling as possible.
“It is disheartening to see a few members saying disparaging and baseless accusations against someone who works tirelessly to ensure the Union thrives.”
Posting on Instagram, President-Elect George Abaraonye, who lost a no-confidence vote at the Union last week, said: “I long considered Moosa a mentor, my big brother in the Union who’d regularly refer to me as his ‘little brother’. Our political divergence became entrenched only when I ran and won against his romantic partner in a democratic election last term.”
Abaraonye contested the results of the vote of no confidence in him. He will not be removed from the position until the appeals are resolved. Once that happens, he will automatically resign as President-Elect.
Harraj commented that “the vote of No Confidence against me was posted on the notice board just hours before the President-Elect’s vote of No Confidence started. This was a calculated act of political retaliation sourced by pure spite for the democratic process.”
