Limkokwing University of Creative Technology

Debating Society Constitution

1. Name
The name of the Society shall the LIMKOKWING UNIVERSITY OF CREATIVE
TECHNOLOGY DEBATING SOCIETY CONSTITUTION (hereinafter referred to as
the Society).
2. Object
a) The object of the Society is to encourage and foster Debating and Public Speaking
at the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, and within the wider community.
b) Pursuant to subsection a) of this section, the Committee shall organise regular
debating evenings in which Society members may participate
3. Membership and Subscriptions
a) All students of the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology are eligible for
membership of the Society. Any other person may be admitted to the Society at the
discretion of the Society.
b) The annual subscription will be set from time to time by the Committee. The
subscription is to be paid by each member by the date specified in Section 3 (d).
c) Only those who have paid their annual subscription for the current year will be
eligible to compete in interuniversity Tournaments vote at any meeting of the
Society or hold office in the Society. Members who have paid the subscription shall
be known as financial members.
4. Competitions
The Society may enter teams in any debating or public speaking competition, either in
Malaysia or overseas.
5. Management of the Society
a) The Committee of the Society, as defined and constituted in Section 6, shall
manage the internal affairs of the Society supervise over the property of the
Society purchase all materials required by the Society and pass accounts for
payment.

b) The funds and resources of the Society, from whatever source they are derived,
shall only be applied to the promotion of the objects of the Society, and no portion of
the funds of the Society shall be paid directly or indirectly by way of dividend, bonus,
salary, to any member of the Society.
c) All monies shall be received by the Treasurer, who shall deposit them in the
Societys bank account.
d) Individual Committee or Society members may not act behalf of the Society or
use its funds, resources, or other assets without the consent of the Committee.
6. The Committee
a) The Committee of the Society, which shall be referred to as the Committee, shall
consist of the following positions, the responsibilities and duties of each being as
follows:
i) The President shall oversee all activities of the Society, and conduct all
transactions with other Debating Societies. The President shall attend all
University and other relevant meetings as the Societys representative.
ii) The VicePresident Administration shall keep a record of the committees
decisions and discussions, and aid the President in facilitating the
committees agenda.
iii) The VicePresident Development shall coordinate regular training for current
and prospective tournament debaters, as well as assisting with training beginner
debaters. They will make available relevant resources to the societys members.
iv) The Treasurer shall collect and account for all subscriptions and other
monies received by the Society and dispose of them as directed by the
Committee keep proper books and furnish a Financial Report, including a
Statement and Expenditure for the year, and a Statement of the Societys
Assets and Liabilities, to the Annual General Meeting of the Society. The
Treasurer shall keep a register of members, and a record of the equipment
owned by the Society and where such equipment is kept.
v) The Development Officer shall coordinate regular training for current and
prospective tournament debaters, as well as assisting with training beginner
debaters. They will make available relevant resources to the societys
members.
vi) The Coordinator shall coordinate relevant debating competitions, which
will take place as part of the Societys regular activities during the year.
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vii) The Social and Promotions officer shall organise social events, and be
responsible for the promotion of the Societies events.
viii) The Equity Officer shall focus on representing the interests of women
and minorities in Society matters, including working to foster an inclusive
and safe community for all Society members, to encourage parity and
representation, and to preside over a formal complaints process to
effectively deal with equity concerns arising from any other member of the
Society.
ix) The Firstyear Representative shall be a student in his or her first year
at the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. He or She shall
represent the views and concerns of firstyear members of the Society,
and shall assist the other members of the Committee and carry out
various responsibilities, as required from time to time by the Committee.
x) The Chief Adjudicator will be an exofficio position, with the commitments
of developing adjudicators, and facilitating the attendance of adjudicators at
national tournaments.
b) Members of the Executive may not hold more than one position on the Debsoc
Executive, with the exception of Chief Adjudicator, but are permitted to sit on other
societys Executives.
c) All Committee members will be elected at General Meetings of the Society.
d) The duties and responsibilities of each Committee member, as included in section
(a), may be temporarily varied or reassigned at any time by a resolution of the
Committee. In particular, the Committee may appoint an Acting President for a
specified period of time who will take over the duties of the President of the Society as
included in section 6(a)(i).
e) In addition to all other duties and responsibilities of each Committee member, as
included in subsection a) of this section, and subject to the provisos in subsection e)
and f) of this section, it shall be the duty and responsibility of all Committee
members to attend all Committee meetings as set out in section 7 of this
Constitution and all debating evenings as set out in subsection b) of section 2 of this
Constitution.
f) If any Committee member is absent from three consecutive Committee meetings
as set out in section 7 of this Constitution without an apology from that member being
accepted by the Committee, the Committee may deem that member to have resigned
from his or her position on the Committee. However, if the Committee member tends

an apology that is declined by the Committee, then all reasonable efforts must be
made to inform him or her of this before this clause may be invoked.
g) If any Committee member is absent from three consecutive debating evenings as
set out in subsection b) of section 2 of this Constitution without an apology from that
member being accepted by the Committee, the Committee may deem that member to
have resigned from his or her position on the Committee. However, if the Committee
member tends an apology that
is declined by the Committee, then all reasonable efforts must be made to inform him
or her of this before this clause may be invoked.
h) Any Committee member may resign from the Committee at any time by submitting
a written resignation to the Secretary.
i) A member of the committee may be removed from their duties by order of the
committee, if they do not consistently fulfil their role on the committee or if they bring
Debsoc into disrepute. A document clearly stipulating the accusations and calling a
committee meeting to decide the matter must be delivered to the President of the
society three days before the intended meeting. The exception is if the President is
the subject of the accusations, in which case the Vice President must receive the
document. The document must then be delivered to that accused. At the meeting the
accused must have an opportunity to address the letter, and may bring a support
person or personal representative. The committee will then vote on whether to remove
the impeached officer. To carry the motion, a majority of 75% must be attained, with
all but one of the committee members present.
7. Committee Meetings
a) Notice of Committee meetings shall be by SMS or Whatsapp and email unless
otherwise requested by a Committee member, in which case a phone call, letter, fax
or other form of personal notification approved by that Committee member may be
used. Notice must be issued at least three working days prior to the date of the
meeting.
b) The quorum for the Committee is five Committee members.
c) Voting at Committee Meetings is by voice, unless a Committee member who will
vote calls for a secret ballot. Motions will be passed by a simple majority of those
voting. Only Committee members can vote at Committee meetings.
d) Committee Meetings will be chaired by the President or, in his or her
absence, by the Committee member whose position appears highest on the list
in Section 6(a). The Chairperson has both a deliberative and a casting vote.

e) Any four Committee members may direct the President or Secretary to call a
Special Committee Meeting to discuss specified items of business. A Special
Committee Meeting requires no advance notice, but all reasonable efforts must be
made to contact and inform all Committee members about such a meeting, before it
takes place. A Special Committee Meeting will only deal with the specific items of
business it is called to discuss and consider. Any motions passed by such a meeting
must receive the positive votes from a simple majority of the total number of
Committee members as included in Section 6(a), whether all Committee members are
present at the meeting or not. The Chairperson has only a deliberative vote at such
meetings.
f) Any member of the Society may attend any Committee Meeting.
8. Annual General Meetings and Special General Meetings
a) Notice of General Meetings shall be by SMS or Whatsapp and email unless
otherwise requested by a financial member, in which case a phone call, letter, fax or
other form of personal notification approved by that financial member may be used.
Notice must be issued at least ten working days prior to the date of the meeting.
b) The Annual General Meeting of the Society shall be held in the second half of
each academic year, at a date to be determined by the Committee. The regular
business for this meeting, which takes precedence over all other business, shall be:
i) To receive the Presidents Annual Report the Treasurers Financial Report The
Annual Report of any debate competitions held, and the Financial Statements for
the preceding year
ii) To elect the Committee members (except the First Year Representative) for
the following year.
c) A Special General Meeting shall be held in the first term of the Limkokwing
University of Creative Technology academic year, at a date to be determined
by the Committee, to elect the First Year Representative.
d) A Special General Meeting of the Society shall be called by the Secretary on
receiving a written request form from at least four financial members of the Society or
by resolution of the Committee.
e) The quorum for General Meetings is fifteen financial members of the Society,
excluding the committee themselves.
f) Voting at all General Meetings shall be by:
i) a secret ballot and/or

ii) Where a financial member who wishes to vote cannot attend a General
Meeting, his or her vote may be cast on his or her behalf by another financial
member who has been chosen by the absent financial member to so vote,
providing the chosen financial member attends the General Meeting. Except for
amendments to this Constitution, all motions will be passed by a simple majority
of those voting.
g) All General Meetings will be chaired by the President or, in his or her absence,
by the Committee member whose position appears highest on the list in Section
6(a). The Chairperson has both a deliberative vote and a casting vote.
9. The Financial Year >>> ???
The financial year of the Society shall commence on November the 1st of each
year, and terminate on October the 31st of that year. Financial expenses of
significant nature after the AGM but the beginning of the new committees
financial year (November 1st), must be disclosed and agreed to on a basis of
consensus, by the incoming committee.
10. Affiliation
a) The Society shall be affiliated to the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology
Students Association and will abide by the decisions and rulings of that Associations
Executive and the conduct of the affairs of the Society shall be in accordance with the
Constitution of the aforementioned Association.
b) The Society will be affiliated to the Malaysian Institute for Debate and Public
Speaking. In addition, the Committee may decide to affiliate the Society to any other
relevant organisations.
11. Winding up
In the event of the Society being wound up, all property, and assets of the Society will
accrue to the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology Students Association,
whose Secretary must be promptly informed, by the incumbent President of the
Society, of the step of winding up.
12. The Constitution
a) This Constitution may only be changed, subject to subsections b) and c) of this
section, at a General Meeting of the Society. Proposed changes to this Constitution
must be handed to the Vice President at least four working days before the date of
such a meeting. The proposed changes must be posted at least three working days
prior to the date of the meeting. Notice must be issued by email, unless otherwise
requested by a financial member, in which case a phone call, letter, fax or other form
of personal notification approved by that financial member may be used.

b) All motions to change this Constitution, subject to subsection c) of this section,

must be passed by at least a twothirds majority of those voting.
c) Neither Clause 11 of this Constitution nor this subclause may be amended or
removed from this Constitution without the approval of the Clubs and Societies Officer
of the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology Students Association.
d) The Secretary of the Society shall notify the Clubs and Societies Officer of the
Limkokwing University of Creative Technology Students Association of any changes to
this Constitution.
e) The Secretary shall keep copies of this Constitution, which shall be available to
members upon request. At least two of these copies must be hard copies of the
Constitution.