Mike Shaskey, Educative Vice President of NZUSA, after spending two years supposedly working on student bursaries, has decided to take up a job in the Education Department. The Education Department is the outfit that presently administers the iniquitous bursaries system. Although [unclear: e] there are certainly precedents for this type of move, students have [unclear: ac] right to expect it not to happen particularly given the current criticism of NZUSA that abound. As a final work on NZUSA Salient takes a look at the style of work required by our National Union.

Last week's National Executive meeting of NZUSA tried to thrash out, yet again, the problems inherent in getting NZUSA across to the inactive 95% of the membership. As indicated, this problem has been tossed around ceaselessly for the last few years. Still no progress has been made it seems.

The reasons for this is that no-one has been prepared to sit down and examine in a systematic way, the manner which the National Officers work in relation to the campuses.

One of the biggest contradictions in NZUSA is definitely that between genuine campus 'activism' and on the other side of the coin, a bureaucratic style of work. It is not enough for student leaders to sit in the office, or visit politicians all day if they expect students to respond to their leadership.

I feel that the National Executive has not touched the central issues in the problem. Sometimes it seems that they don't really want to. But last National Executive some of these did start to emerge such as: do you want a student politician to write submissions or do you want them to organise student activities or protests?