Latecomer joins the fray
Gabriel Arafa
The race for the student presidency at the University of Edinburgh got a bit busier last week as Gabriel Arafa, an eleventh-hour candidate, announced his intention to stand.
Mr Arafa told The Journal: "I decided to enter the race very late in the day. I made the decision at the very last minute but I think coming in late is an advantage."
Speaking just after his launch event on Monday night, he said: "We had a great night tonight, and a great turnout. I think the reason for that was that tonight, like the campaign, was all about real students, not party politics. I’ve got a strong team behind me, we’re excited and ready to go, and we know we can win.
"In my manifesto, I've got 15 clear, achievable policies that will be good for students.
“I want to see the Students’ Association campaigning for students on student issues. Each year every candidate makes the easy pledges of opposing fees and better feedback. Of course that will be part of my manifesto, but I’m also going to be looking at a range of exciting new policies as well.”
Mr Arafa is being supported by former student president Tim Goodwin, who resigned from his position as elections correspondent for The Journal on Friday 22 February to run Mr Arafa's campaign.
Mr Goodwin said in a statement: "I’ve been really inspired by Gabe. I believe he is the only candidate who can heal the party political cracks in our Students’ Association. A Gabe victory in this election would mean a return to the days of student representation, not partisan politics."
Presidential rivals Harry Cole and Nick Ward have both already attacked Mr Arafa for adopting a number of their own policies.
Mr Cole, in a statement on his website, said: "Gabriel Arafa is a late entry to the presidential race and I welcome the competition. A bigger field is normally a better one, because you'd hope it would lead to more ideas about how EUSA should be run.
Unfortunately however, Arafa's manifesto doesn't really represent much in the way of fresh thinking. Essentially, he's cherry-picked the best from each candidate and is trying to pass off their ideas as his own."
Mr Arafa refused to be drawn into the political squabbling saying: "I've been watching the negative campaigning, and I definately want to avoid it. It's not my style. I don't want to engage in petty squabbles."
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