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NEWS: GAA-law team engage in SU election vote fraud
GAA-law election canvassers sent text messages to students asking for Queen’s Online password details in order to fraudulently register SU election votes, The Gown has learned.
BY BRENDAN HUGHES
In a text message circulated around the student body, a student campaigning for the team requested student numbers and passwords in order to access private QOL accounts.
“If you don’t have time (to vote) could you please send me your student number and password”, the text message reads.
It is unknown whether other candidates’ teams employed similar tactics in the rush to secure votes.
Earlier this week, the Students’ Union election results revealed a landslide defeat for the GAA-law ticket. However, the team did manage to secure the key position of President for Gareth McGreevy, the current VP Campaigns and Communications.
Returning officer for the elections Dominic Doherty expressed some concern over these revelations, saying, “Unauthorised use of a student’s username and password for the purposes of electoral fraud would result in disciplinary action. It might also constitute an offence under the Data Protection Act.”
“If, however, students are willingly supplying their QOL details to other persons, that’s a private matter for themselves. Students are supposedly educated adults and, presumably, are aware of the implications associated with sharing their personal data with others,” Doherty added.
Tags: election, Gown, newspaper, qub, QUBSU, Queen's, queen's university, student, students, su, The Gown
This entry was posted on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 3:00 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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I didn’t really appreciate being approached whilst writing an essay on the PC’s downstairs in the Library. Thankfully, I had already voted, and not for the group which was encouraging me to do so.
This is my second university. At the first, there were rules which prohibited any campaigning on SU grounds (ie the Union) and within the Library/Lecture theatres etc. I think this would be a good idea as it would also remove half a rainforest worth of unimaginative posters.
I would like to confirm that the John B Dick of comment number 40 fame is not the real John B. Dick. Down with this sort of thing!
@cw – Since the elections are for the SU exec, why wouldn’t people campaign there? Obviously it can get a bit overwhelming but if you do feel like canvassers have become harrassers then feel free to report them. Nobody was meant to campaign in the library, as any canvasser who asked the receptionists at the front desk would have been told – if you got hassled there then again, report them.
I find the idea of banning candidates from campaigning in the SU really bizarre – why would you do that when that’s where the Exec are based, and where half of their work centres around?
The rainforest’s worth of posters were all collected by an army of candidates and their helpers on Wednesday night, then recycled – not as good as not printing them but at least they weren’t binned
Could we stop talking about “The CU-DUP alliance” its really misleading. As a regular CU attender only 2 of the 5 elected on Critchlow’s ticket have ever been to CU and of them at most 1 DUP supporter (can’t imagine England, Scotland and Malaysia are massive hotbeds of DUP activity!) Fact is the GAA are just bitter that they lost to a better and more positive campaign.
Seems to me that if this was a text msg it was probably only sent to the candidate in question’s so-called friends. Who they probably thought were going to vote for them anyway. If they aren’t friends why would they have their numbers? I still get my mum to do banking for me when on holiday, this kind of thing isn’t actually dodgy or questionable amoung people who trust eachother.
The whole Irish thing I did think was a bit much tbh, because I knew it would be seen as a nationalist only policy.
Obviously signage solely in Irish would be very alienating but I doubt Miss Lynch was suggesting that the English signs be removed – that would be sectarian.
As a matter of fact nationalist students could equally argue that it is sectarian for 100% of the signs to be in English when 50% of the student body claim Irish heritage. I think most nationalists have grown to accept these double standards instead of attempting to gain equality.
Shame really, I love the Irish/English road signs down south and would love to see them cross the border. It would encourage Irish education amoung those that claim Irish heritage, which would be great as the NI education system doesn’t do a good job of encouraging any languages.
Er…claiming Irish heritage…thats not really relevant to use of languages.
Signs are there to be practical. How many of those who claim ‘Irish heritage’ can honestly say they are at least as fluent in Irish as they are in English; that it is their first language. I’m going to say its remarkably few. Even a few Shinners who use it in the assembly arent anywhere near fluent. You’d think if a language is so vital to their Irish heritage, they would at least have made the effort and be fluent in it. Irish signs would serve no useful purpose other than as political symbolism and one-upmanship.
Surely if genuinely concerned that the NI Education system should improve in encouraging languages, you would agree it should do so prioritising languages which are most practically useful both to a persons career options and the overall NI economy. Irish would be pretty far down the most used languages in international business one can safely assume.
Oh and just to be cross-commmunity, i’d pour similar contempt on similar proposals from an Ulster-Scots prospective.
Irish signs around queens will not encourage Irish language education. It’ll only serve to create another non-issue that takes away from more pressing issues that the exec should be dealing with.
It is the mindset of individuals such who choose to view irish culture as intimidating or devisive that make it so.
As a point in case I was with some friends in the summer most of whom were protestants and myself and a catholic friend started to sing Irish traditional music. Much to my surprise we were soon faced with an onslaught of verbal attacks. They wished to know why we were being so sectarian. We apologised to keep them happy. But tbh I didn’t realise the Pretty Little girl from Omagh was in the IRA. Instead of listening to the lyrics they chose to hear a political msg where there was none. Prehaps you are doing the same?
And English is certainly my 1st language, but had I a choice in the matter do you think it would be?
If we are going to have irish on signs in the name of diversity will there also be translations in ulster scots? We do have three official languages afterall.
Whether or not giving out one’s QOL details is illegal or not, it is not in the spirit of the election for a team to do so. If people really want to vote for candidates then they will do so at their free will. The acts of the GAA contingent here is a display of pretty bad form.
@ Sticks and stones- perhaps if you had a choice, English wouldn’t be your first language, and that’s absolutely fair enough. However the purpose of signs is to be informative and to direct people, and that will best serve both Nationalists and Unionists if they are in English. Let’s say Gaelic was used on the signs – how many of even the Nationalist Community would actually read the Gaelic part to gain the information? They’re not going to look past a translation in their first language just below it!
I’m more than happy for people to express their cultural heritage – I’m a member of the Alliance Party, and believe absolutely in non sectarianism in all forms. However, I just can’t help feel this would just be another great waste of money for something that would be of no practical use – if we want to encourage the use of the Irish language (heck, I woulnd’t mind learning some myself) I think the resources would be better used in running language classes or even cultural hertitage events. The changing of the signs wouldn’t practically benefit anyone, and whether you agree with them or not, there’s no doubt this would cause upset amongst some communities, and would lead to drawing dividing lines within the Queen’s Community, rather than trying to being it closer together to a point where things like this aren’t an issue.
In an ideal world, I’d support the signs, but I just don’t think we’re at a place were it would be accepted, and I think there are ways the money could be better spent that would be more productive and less divisive. I’d ask you please to consider seriously these comments, and not just dismiss them – I think there’s a middle ground to be found here. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts.
@ Let’s think about this
Sorry this reply is really late:
For the most part I agree with you. I only make a strong positive argument for the signs because I don’t believe they should be considered the main reason not to vote for someone. Which is the impression I get from people on here.
My own housemate said that as soon as they read that tiny part of Grace’s policy they decided not to vote for her, dismissing everything else. They even acted disgusted at the thought.
Even if all of her other policies had been the exact mirror of what they wanted from a candidate, the Irish Language was enough to make them change their mind.
Languages shouldn’t be that scary. And it may seem wasteful to someone opposed to the suggestion but unfortunately few people are going to agree with 100% of the candidates’ proposals or spendings anyway. SUTV being the main example there.
And @ ppl slagging me for writing “claiming Irish heritage” I just didn’t want to write “are Irish” or “are from the north of Ireland” because I didnt want to spark an unnecessary row.