Two weeks ago about 99 percent of the student body decided not to vote in the Student Association executive elections. I can’t say I blame them.

I have been investigating the SA for most of the semester now, and I can attest that the SA is not looking out for you. Instead, their political games result in senators becoming ostracized for speaking up, appointments of friends to committee and senate positions and a complete waste of time and money — money that comes from student fees.

The SA has problems, and many want to fix the problem but get shot down in the process, like former senator Elaine Phillips. According to fellow senator Rebecca Edwards, Phillips noticed there was no publicity for the SA elections last semester. She contacted the Northern Star because she wanted to address the matter and inform the student populous.

Apparently, the leadership of the SA didn’t like this very much, and to make a long story short, she got a talking to and never really spoke up again.

Another example is former senator Elsa Resendiz. Resendiz spoke in my last column about corruption among the SA leadership.

For some reason, Resendiz got kicked out of the SA seven days later. According to her dismissal e-mail, she missed SA Senate meetings on 10-9-05, 10-16-05, 11-13-05 and recorded half an absence on 11-20-05.

The SA Constitution does say that no senator can miss more than three meetings a semester, but it seems highly suspicious that she got kicked out a semester after she missed those days and just seven days after speaking against the SA establishment. On top of that, Senator Kevin Wagner told me SA committees rarely meet. He is on the Mass Transit Committee, which, he said, hasn’t met once this semester.

Edwards serves on the University Services Committee with SA president-elect Adam Novotney. While she admitted she missed some meetings, Edwards said Novotney missed a majority of the committee meetings. And this is the senator elected to lead the SA next year?

It seems committee members should be held to the same standards. The committees are held to benefit the students, but if they don’t meet, what’s the point? Wagner said Senate Speaker J.R. Perez has publicly stated he will not enforce the attendance policy on the committees.

The appointment system is another problem.

Senator Josh Alvarado told me he was appointed simply because he was rushing the same frat Perez belonged to.

“I feel I was not the most qualified person for the job, and I was only appointed because Perez could easily control me since I was rushing his frat,” Alvarado said. “He used to call me telling me to vote on a bill a certain way. Since that time I dropped the frat and his calls have ceased.”

I believe a lot of the Senate’s problems stem from J.R. Perez. For two weeks I have tried to get a hold of him. I called his office numerous times, showed up to his office frequently and e-mailed him twice. I have yet to get a response. I wanted to ask him his take on some of his policies, and I wanted the SA attendance records to check up on accountability. But I have heard neither hair nor hide from this guy for more than two weeks.

It would seem he doesn’t care about the students one bit; not enough to get back to them in a timely matter anyway, if at all.

Senator Missy Lugo said in a Northern Star article last week, “Don’t complain if you’re not involved.”

Lugo may offer her condescending comments, but the facts show that the SA has given us no reason to get involved. They barely advertise elections or townhall meetings. They don’t return our phone calls or e-mails. They appoint friends instead of qualified students. And, they don’t look out for students’ best interests.

And they like it that way. It keeps the powerful in power and keeps enemies out of power. I just hope someone else decides to dig deeper into the problem known as SA.