Overdue

By Christian Edu B. Villegas
(Vol. XXVII No. 16, Editorial Cartoon)

Overdue

Ever since the day the university administration decided to have a dress code for Negros Oriental State University (NORSU), deciding what clothes are proper and what are not, has been a dilemma for the students. In the first few months of implementation, arguments between guards and students are a common occurrence. Without a proper guideline, a lot of students are often seen milling outside the university, unable to attend their classes because they were not allowed to get inside.

It was therefore a relief when the Student Government (SG) Legislative body started to formulate a proper dress code which will be followed by the NORSU System. With a proper dress code, there will no longer be questions as to what clothes one should wear to get inside the university.

Unfortunately, the said dress code which has been ‘in the process’ since last school year remains unapproved until now. The result, therefore, is the frequent bickering between the guards and the students, unable to agree with each other because they do not have a proper dressing guideline to follow.

The first semester has ended and the second semester has started and as the term of present officials are getting shorter, one cannot help but wonder if this dress code will ever be realized.

Despite the fact that the dress code policy has been implemented since the previous school year, questions of “nganong naka-sulod ka?” can still be heard inside the campus and girls wearing mini-skirts and sleeveless clothes can still be seen walking around the campus. The latter usually cause other students to grumble why mini-skirt-wearing students are allowed to enter when this type of clothing is explicitly prohibited together with flat sandals and shorts.

A proper dress code will not only eliminate grumblings from the students but will also be an advantage since students will no longer have to constantly worry if the clothes they are wearing will be allowed or not. It would also be easier for the guards to discern which type of clothes are considered proper and which ones are not. In addition, the guards will no longer have to quarrel with the students because they will finally have a document to show to the students and they need not rely on their judgments as to what is decent and what is not.

Every Norsunian is getting tired of the dress code problem, even the Chief Security Officer expressed his weariness regarding the issue. However, just because the NORSU community is getting tired of hearing it doesn’t mean that we have to take for granted the fact that after almost a year, the university still hasn’t come up with a proper dress code for the students to follow.

With the recent discrimination complaints raised by transgenders in the university who were not allowed to get inside the campus for wearing women’s outfit, the need for a proper dress code is again emphasized. Unless the resolution for the proper dress code is approved, the confusion surrounding this policy will continue.

Regrettably, time is running fast. The days are getting shorter and soon it will be the end of another school year and still, no dress code has been approved. Soon it will be too late to implement the said policy because new sets of officers will replace the present ones and new questions will be raised regarding the present proposed dress code.

Unless the SG-Legislative could present the approved dress code, the dilemma will continue and there will be no harmony between the students and the university guards. Norsunians can only hope that by this semester, the headaches and confusion caused by the dress code policy will finally be solved. Each and every student is looking forward to a confusion-free dress code policy this semester and for school years to come.

Only the NORSU admin and the SG can solve this problem. So help them God.