Bristruths submit candidate for SU officer role

By Ellie Brown, Investigations Correspondent and Maddy Russell, News Editor

Rory (Bristruths) will be standing against the existing Officer for Union Affairs, Julio Mkok.

The race to be the SU's next Union Affairs Officer heated up after student confessions page Bristruths announced that they are submitting a candidate for the role.

As SU campaigns kicked off on Monday morning, the Facebook page 'Bristruths Rory For Union Affairs' appeared, alongside a banner on Woodland Road.

In keeping with the page's policy of having anonymous admins, the candidate's face is not visible in their campaign literature - instead, it is hidden by a Bristruths mask.

'Rory's' manifesto states that they aim to 'engage voters who have never engaged with SU elections before', and 'highlight the innumerable ways the University has let students down.'

'Senate House. Hummus. Mental Health. Minotaur in Queens. Bring back Wardens. Free Chicken Run download on Eduroam. Actually treating students with respect.' - the summary of Bristruths/Rory's manifesto submitted to the SU

Speaking to Epigram, 'Rory' said: 'since being born age 5, I have always wanted to run for a leadership role.'

'Instilled in me is an unparalleled fight and drive for equality and justice, having been mercilessly bullied at school because of my massive mis-shapen orange head.

'I believe that I can make this university better by fixing important issues that students really care about, such as the price of hummus, the font that a building's name is written in, or where the mental health spending has actually gone.

'It was a no-brainer that I am uniquely talented and popular enough to drive people to actually vote, as the current turnout of just 12.1% for this role is very disappointing to say the least.

'If elected I will physically fight for all students to make this a better place for everyone with sensible policies to fix sensible problems overseen by a sensible candidate.

'In closing my take home message to every student out there who is considering lending me their vote is that I, Bristruths, will never give you up, and will never let you down.

Rory is standing against current Union Affairs Officer Julio Mkok.

In an interview with Epigram, Mkok also outlined his motivations for running again, stating that he had found the role 'so fun' and had enjoyed working on policies that he felt were helpful for students.

Mkok said that he was keen to stay on in his role in order fulfil the campaign promises he made in 2019 and to begin working on new projects.

Ideas outlined in his manifesto include continuing to campaign for free laundry services in halls; transportation to major airport cities for international students and a societies talent show.

He also stated that he was keen to set up a Union of SUs across the South West and wanted to focus on putting more pressure on the University to further reduce its carbon footprint.

Speaking to Epigram, Mkok said: 'People should be re-electing me for continuity.

'I made promises at the beginning, I’ve delivered the majority. I haven’t left the promises I made at the beginning, and can contribute to overall student experience.'

Featured image: Courtesy of Bristruths Rory For Union Affairs

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