New sign leads to questions about wasteful spending

As Laurier students arrive on campus after a summer back at home, they will be greeted with an atrocious display of red obnoxiousness in front of the Fred Nichols Campus Centre.

Next to the construction of the new and expensive extension of the Terrace, is yet another symbol of the fiscal discipline of Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union (WLUSU) that knows no bounds. Proudly set up is a massive, bright, red screen that displays anything from the time of day, to a random fluttering Canadian flag.

The incredible part is the cost: almost $105,000 dollars, $86,000 of which is for the sign itself, with the rest going towards installation.

That is the equivalent of almost eight dollars per student coming out of their wallets.

The money spent for the sign came out of the Student Life Levy (SLL) and WLUSU is under strict regulations and have a deadline for spending the money. However, if the union is going to be so frivolous with the expenditure of the SLL, why not alter this policy or at least spend students’ money in a way that benefits them on the day-to-day.

Students want to see some kind of tangible return on their investment towards the union and this sign lacks any substantial benefit for them.

Canada is just emerging from a recession and students and their parents are pinching every penny in order to afford continually escalating tuition and student fees. It is time that WLUSU recognizes this fact and realizes that the money they are blowing out the window doesn’t belong to them.

If WLUSU does not have anything useful to spend the fees they collect on year after year, then they should cut student fees accordingly. Their spending is becoming excessive.