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THE DAILY COUGAR
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February 21, 2012 Issue 78, Volume 77
SGA ELECTION 2012:: CANDIDATE Q&A
Presidential hopefuls state their case Femi Jekayinfa
Markley Rogers
Taylor McGilvray
Joshua Mann
THE DAILY COUGAR
THE DAILY COUGAR
The Daily Cougar: What are three things voters should know about you? Femi Jekayinfa: One thing is that I am a regular student. I feel like at the end of the day, the value of my degree and the external perception of my degree matters above most other things. I want to make it to where anyone on the outside looking in will value me because I went to UH. TDC: So, that extends to other UH students’ degrees too? FJ: Yes. I mean everyone’s degree. Also, growing up I always believed that if you want something done right, you should do it yourself. I feel like there’s a lot of things about the University — simple, little things — that need to be changed — a lot of things that inconvenience people. Those things bother
The Daily Cougar: What are three things the voters should know about you? Markley Rogers: Well, the first is something I have in common with everyone on campus — I love the University of Houston. The second is that I have a record of service to the University. When Gov. Perry was proposing budget cuts to higher education, I used my capacity as associate director of external affairs with SGA to organize a rather sizable group of students to go up to the capitol during spring break and we met with every representative and every senator in the Texas congress and spoke to them about the budget cuts and proposed methods that could lessen the blow to the University of Houston. And third would be that I have the capacity to do good things for the University, and I’m wanting to get elected so that I can have the
me, and there is something I can do about it. Also, I lived in Moody Towers last semester, and anyone that lives there knows that there’s a lot of stupid things that they do to us that they shouldn’t. And there’s a lot of stuff wrong with just the way everything’s set up, and I had to experience that, so I understand firsthand — I’m not just going to be changing things because I was told by a student JEKAYINFA continues on page 2
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
means by which to use it. Right now I don’t have that much authority in the University, but I know if I were to be elected I could benefit the campus. TDC: What qualifies to you be president? MR: I have built relationships with people in the administration and I’ve built plenty of relationships with people outside administration. Working in my capacity of associate ROGERS continues on page 3
Cedric Bandoh
Femi Jekayinfa
David Williams
Joy Ramirez
Markley Rogers
Carl McGee
Michael McHugh
Jeffery Syptak
Each candidate will be featured in our “Candidate Q&A” series this week.
Turner Harris
Amayrani Gomez
Mohammed Aijaz
Josue Alvarado
Camden Mahbabani Jack Wehman
Ramon Montano Tarek Haidar
Source: Student Government Association
CRIME
UH police investigating bicycle theft Ariana Benavidez
THE DAILY COUGAR Students’ bicycles may not be as safe as the owners would like to think when locked to a bicycle rack on campus. There have been frequent reports of bicycle theft around campus, and, as of this semester, no suspects have been caught, according the police crime bulletins. Students like playwriting and dramaturgy junior Matthew Padora have not let these incidents influence their decisions to ride a bicycle. Padora lives about a mile off campus, works in Rice Village and has been riding a bicycle to school since fall 2010. The safety of the bicycle is most
dependent upon the type of lock used, Padora said. “I use a Kryptonite U-lock, and it hasn’t failed me yet,” Padora said. “To fellow cyclists, I would never recommend using a cable lock and I would never recommend keeping it locked in the same place for an extended period.” Marketing sophomore Charles Duncan started riding his bicycle this semester and said he rides every day except when it rains. His tactic is using two dual chains in hopes it will make his bicycle “a harder target for potential thieves,” he said. He also leaves his bicycle in areas that are more populated. Bicycle thieves won’t keep Duncan from riding his bicycle, he said. “What is disappointing, however, is the
lacking presence of the UH police. I have yet to see one of them actually ‘walking the beat.’ This would probably be the best deterrent against bicycle thefts,” Duncan said. Richard Bonnin, the university’s executive director of media relations, said campus safety is being taken seriously. “There is no higher priority for the University than the safety of its students and of the UH community,” Bonnin said. Progress is being made on the investigations, Bonnin said. “UHDPS is actively and aggressively investigating the incidents of bicycle theft on campus,” Bonnin said. “While the details of the investigations are confidential, police believe they have identified a possible suspect or suspects in some of the recent cases.”
UHDPS and the Dean of Students Office have established a focus group chaired by Assistant Vice President for Public Safety and Security Malcolm Davis. “The Bicycle Safety and Use Focus Group will generate a set of policies and procedures to be used by the campus community related to bicycle safety and security on campus,” Bonnin said. “This group will assess the current concerns and issues related to the storage of bicycles on the campus property as well as review the current laws and ordinances related to bicycle storage. “They will also create the appropriate policy and/or procedure to create a safe and secure atmosphere for bicycles and their BIKES continues on page 3