CONSTITUTION
Article I. Name
Section 1.01
There shall be in FIJI ISLANDS an Association known as “The Pacific Medical Students’
Association Incorporated. Hereinafter referred to as either “the Association” or “PMSA” respectively.
(a)The Registered Postal Address shall be:
C/- Pacific Medical Student Association
P. O. Box 1886 Lautoka, Fiji Islands
(b) The Registered Office shall be:
259 Vomo Street, Lautoka Fiji Islands
(c) The Executive Council shall have the power to determine from time to time the Registered
Postal Address and where the Registered Office shall be.
Article II. Objects
Section 2.01 The objects of the Association shall be:
(a) To be an organisation for communication and representation of Pacific Island medical students locally and internationally to leading stakeholders
(b) To organise and provide activities for members of the Association that: (i) Allow collaboration between medical schools
(ii) Provide medical education beyond that offered within the respective curriculum of each medical school
(c) To ensure and enable effective networking and communication between individual medical student associations in the Pacific region:
(i) In research
(ii) In clinical medicine
(iii) In advocacy and health promotion
(d) To ensure and enable effective networking and communication with other regional medical student associations
(e) To promote awareness among medical students of issues relevant to the study and practice of medicine
(f) To advocate on a global scale for engagement with Pacific Island healthcare issues
(g) To develop leadership and professionalism amongst Pacific Island medical students
(h) Chiefly, to make clear that the practice of medicine transcends borders and to ensure that in times of great need medical assistance will be provided by all neighbouring countries
Article III. Company property
Section 3.01 Company assets
(a) Association’s income and assets shall be bought according to the association’s events and
its objectives
Section 3.02 Company expenses
(c) The expenses of the company must be made in accordance to the events of the association held.
(d) The association shall pay for the expenses and also do payments to the local governance according to the country’s constitution and legislative for running the charitable student association.
(e) Payment shall be made directly to the companies and the relevant authorities not the Director or any single person. The payment must only be executed according to the name of the company and the authorities.
(f) Approximately 3% interest rate per 3 months charged on money borrowed from any Member at the interest rate determined by the Board of Directors or President. Legal action shall be taken in the event of uncleared debt before the year end election.
(g) Renting products or property shall be hired by the Executive members or the Board of directors.
Article IV. Policy
Section 4.01
(a) Policy shall be set by the members according to the objectives of the association.
(b) Policy made by the association shall not interfere with any political, religious, social, racial, national or any other form of discrimination.
(c) The policy shall be in favour of improving medical education. (d) Policy made shall be authorised by the executive members
(e) Before the enforcement of the new policies, the President or the Vice President shall be informed. The copies of the new policies shall be sent to the Secretary
(f) The President or any person nominated by the President may make any public statements
that are not inconsistent with the public policy objectives of the Association set by the Members
Article V. Membership
Section 5.01 Regional Medical Student Membership
Membership of the Association shall be open to any person studying at Medical Universities in the following regions, including:
(a) Australia
(b) New Zealand
(c) Papua New Guinea
(d) Solomon Islands
(e) Vanuatu (f) Samoa (g) Kiribati (h) Tonga
(i) Federated States of Micronesia
(j) Palau
(k) Marshall Islands
(l) Tuvalu
(m) Nauru
(n) Fiji Islands
Section 5.02 Non-Regional Medical Student Membership
(a) Any individual, from any part of the world, who does not study in the regional medical schools listed above, will be categorised as an international candidate member.
(b) Temporary membership can be given to non-medical personnel if need be to fulfill the objectives of the Association as decided by the Executive Members.
Section 5.03 Membership Requirements
(a) Eligible personnel shall pay a membership fee as decided by the Executive Members.
(b) Any eligible individual can become a member of the Association by making a payment of the membership fee to the Treasurer.
(c) Membership fee shall be determined by the Executive Members at the AGM.
(d) The Pacific Medical Student Association is composed of Members, hereinafter also referred to as ordinary volunteer members and members holding offices.
(e) General Assembly shall elect offices for specific duties and time period.
Section 5.03 Lifetime Membership
(a) The founder Mr Kishan Kishore Chand and Mr Aidan James Kashyap of Pacific
Medical Student Association are the lifetime members from the starting of Association.
Article VI. Admission
Section 6.01
(a) A person becomes the member of the association after meeting the eligibility criteria of the constitution
(b) Except for the founders of Pacific Medical Student Association, lifetime membership will only be honoured after being the Member of Association for a continuous period of 10 years without any interruption in between.
(c) The President, Vice President and the Board of Directors can refuse or terminate any membership if the person does not abide to the constitution or is responsible for causing any form of discrimination in the association
(d) Any member or personnel involved in the Pacific Medical Student Association shall act according to the constitution and the by-laws of the Association
(e) Membership shall be done according to the respective application forms
(f) The companies wishing to be a part of the Pacific Medical Student Association shall be approved by the executive members.
(g) Companies who agree to provide sponsorship may use Pacific Medical Student Association’s logo for advertisement purposes with the permission from the President, Vice President and the Board of Directors.
(h) All types of membership record shall be kept in electronic databases and the record register shall be kept safely by the Secretary.
Article VII. General Meetings
Section 7.01
(a) The General meeting is composed of all the members of the Association which is the highest authority and decision making body of the Association.
(b) Any person, excluding the companies has one vote at the general meeting. (c) Companies can be a part of the discussion panel in the general meeting.
(d) A full member is not allowed to grant power of attorney to another member in order to cast
a vote for his or her place in the decision/discussion or at the Annual meeting.
(e) A member shall speak for him or herself. Only one Company representative shall take part in the Annual General meeting.
(f) The General Assembly shall meet at least once a year. The General Assembly or the President together with the Board of Directors shall decide on the places and dates for the next general Assembly meeting.
(g) Official invitations for the general Assembly meeting shall be sent to all the members of the
Association.
(h) Skype or Online video streaming shall be facilitated for regional and international members. Online voting shall be conducted for the witnessing member while the Annual General Meeting is in progress.
(i) If necessary, an additional General meeting shall be organised if one third of the members agree so in the General meeting.
Article VIII. AGM Section 8.01
(a) Annual General Meeting shall be conducted before the 31st of December each year.
(b) AGMs are to be held in accordance with the act of the Constitution Article VII section 7.01
Article IX. Notice
Section 9.01
(a) Notice for Annual General meeting shall be sent 2 months prior to the Annual general meeting.
(b) Upon the need for an additional general meeting, the constitution allows for the conduction of a shorter meeting with a 21 days prior written notice.
(c) The written notice shall specify the date, time and place of meeting and the reason for the meeting.
(d) The Board of Directors can postpone or cancel any general meeting if there is an issue of political/environmental instability. However the members must be informed or given a notice of the postponement or cancellation 3 days prior to the actual General meeting.
Article X. Executive Member
Section 10.01 President/ Chairperson
(a) The principal leader of the committee and has overall responsibility for the organizational administration
(b) Set overall annual committee agenda and help the committee prioritize its objectives accordingly.
(c) Liaise with other committees and discuss the progress and concerns which would help in achieving the committees plans and goals
(d) Able to communicate effectively.
(e) Knowledgeable of the constitutions, rules and duties of all executive members
(f) Able to question/ confront any executives if roles / duties are not carried out as directed under the constitution.
(g) Manage Trello Boards
(h) Delegate responsibilities to the committee
(i) Chair to oversee flights and accommodation
Section 10.02 Vice President /Co - chair
(a) Able to take full responsibility of the chairperson on his absence with regular updates. (b) Responsible for monitoring activities undertaken in the committee as listed in Article X Section 10.01
(c) Gathers and submits report of each executive to the chairperson
(d) Vice President will work closely with the President to gain experience and to become familiar with the required duties if they choose to fulfill that role in the future (also enables smoother transition)
Section 10.03 Secretary
(a) Responsibility for carrying out all administrative documentation
(b) Regularly report to the Co-chair
(c) Sets agenda, meeting time, date for meeting (ad hoc basis). Take meeting minutes – also responsible for distribution to Regional and international members
(d) Keeps all organisations records (responsible for managing information archives) (e) Able to communicate effectively (required core skill)
(f) Shall maintain confidentiality on relevant matters
(g) Book flights and accommodation
Section 10.04 Treasurer
(a) Chief Financial Officer
(b) Responsibility for all of the organisational monetary transactions and financial records
(c) Prepares budgets, regular reports and to authorise all transactions
(d) Updates Chair and Co-chair about the financial accountability of committee on regular basis.
(e) Process reimbursements, fundraising and allocation of funds accordingly
(f) Maintain budget – keep records on Google Drive (g) Present a Budget Summary whenever required. (h) Profit planning
Section 10.05 Convenor
(a) Is fully responsible for the programme direction of any events from conception through to the completion of the event.
(b) Shall provide details of the proposed events including the timeframe, venues, suppliers, legal obligation, staff and budget
(c) Coordinates all events and manages the venues accordingly.
(d) Prepare and set goals for the committee for the yearly calendar in order to accomplish the objectives of the committee
(e) Prepare separate annual reports on the events conducted and to present these reports at the
Annual General Assembly
Section 10.06 IT Officer
(a) Set up and facilitate the use of technology in the committee events
(b) Create and update social sites, mobile apps and web hosting.
(c) Testing and evaluating new technology for the benefit of committee events.
(d) Providing support, including documentation and relevant information for the member’s
knowledge of the usage of any device.
(e) Installs and configures computers for event usage.
(f) Takes full responsibility for all the technology used in any events. (g) Check all involved equipment for the programme or event.
(h) Responsible for proper storage of technology when not in use.
(i) Records any damage or faulty equipment and notifies the secretary immediately
(j) Submit annual report to the Secretary
Section 10.07 Logistic Officer
(a) Data collector on every activities conducted
(b) Develop logistics and supportive plans, budget requirements and timeline for events (c) Responsible in cost analysis, event scheduling, travelling and freight consolidation (d) Analysing committee activities and suggest improvement for events conducted
(e) Supplies evaluation such as price check and quotation (f) Monitoring and stock -taking of all equipment present (g) Maintaining inventories
(h) Creates and analyses feedback forms
(i) Presents an official report upon request by the Secretary/Chair/Co-chair. (j) Prepares Annual report for AGM
Section 10.08 International Representatives
(a) Handle acceptance of international medical students, prepare a Guide for international students and send information about the Pacific Medical Student Association.
(b) Distribute information and advice accordingly to the medical universities, medical associations and international students about the programme and events conducted by the association.
(c) Help association for drafting and negotiating international cooperation agreements, international funding opportunities.
(d) Helps Association in writing policies for international members in events conducted by the association
(e) Ensures presence of the association at international platform, meeting and forums.
(f) Work with Regional representatives in hosting visits by members and delegations from international universities and other public bodies to events organised by the association.
(g) Helps Association in international publication and advertisements
(h) Sets platform and builds international profile for the Association through visits, media coverage, events and conferences
(i) Builds international opportunities for the Association.
Section 10.09 Regional Representative
(a) Respect Fijian culture and pacific culture and perform needed ceremonies for any negotiation
(b) Handle acceptance of Regional medical students, prepare a Guide for Regional students and send information about the Pacific Medical Student Association.
(c) Gives information and advice to the Medical Universities, medical associations and
Regional students about the programme and events conducted by the association.
(d) Help association for drafting and negotiating Regional cooperation agreements, Regional funding opportunities.
(e) Helps Association in writing policies for Regional members in events conducted by the association
(f) Ensures presence in the Regional and international platforms, meetings and forums.
(g) Work with International representatives in hosting visits by members and delegations from international universities and other public bodies to events organised by the association.
(h) Helps Association in Regional publication and advertisements
(i) Sets platform and builds Regional profile for the Association through visits, media coverage, events and conferences
(j) Builds Regional opportunities for the Association.
(k) Respects the Pacific culture and participates in all cultural ceremonies for negotiation.
Section 10.10 University Representative
(a) Selected by the University to be represented in the Association
(b) Provides information and guidelines for its respective University members
(c) Represent respective bodies in the conference or any event organised by the association
(d) Provide a guideline for the association for easy communication with the involved
Universities
Section 10.11 Board of Directors
(a) Registered as legal and rightful representative for the organization
(b) Act as neutral personnels when dealing with Executive or members of the association
(c) Able to advice, orient and clear any doubts raised in the committee.
(d) Makes recommendations on all the issues that require the actions of the association
(e) Keeps all records from the day of establishment of the committee
(f) Provides guidance to the committee in development of the associations’ goals and objectives.
(g) Shall be fully committed to the association
(h) May overrule the decisions of the President if need be through collective decision making between the trustees
(i) Handles all the legal matter of the Association
(j) Involves people appropriately in decision making events
(k) Develop policies for the function of the association and the responsibility of the administration and faculty to administer and implement the polices made
(l) Approve the annual budgets
(m) Evaluates the performance of the President annually
(n) Protect the association from undue pressure by the external bodies
(o) Consider the best interest of the association at all times.
Article XI. Quorum
Section 11.01
(a) A quorum of Members is more than 50% of the executive association representatives and more than 50% of the non-executive members.
(b) No business transaction shall occur at a General Meeting unless a quorum of members are present to execute the business.
(c) If more than 50% of the members are not present within 25 minutes after the time of appointment, the general meeting automatically dissolves.
(d) After the meeting dissolves, the executive shall decide on the time and place within 7 days to conduct a general meeting again.
Article XII. Adjournment
Section 12.01
The President may, with consent of any general meeting adjourn the meeting if more that 50%
executive and 50% non-executive members are not present.
Article XIII. Seals
Section 13.01
If the Association has a Seal, one or more duplicate seals-
(a) The name of the Association must appear in readable, bold legible characters on the common seal
(b) The documents sealed shall be recorded and the copy of the details kept by the Secretary. (c) A document may only be sealed with the common seal under the authority of the Trustees, President, Vice president and the Secretary
The sealing must always be dated and witnessed by the signature of two committee members who have the authority to use the common seal
Article XIV. Members’ voting rights
Section 14.01
(a) Organizational elections shall take place at least once per year
(b) At any meeting conducted by the association, with a show of hands on a poll by the members present shall be counted as a single vote
(c) Each member is entitled to give a single vote at the general election. (d) Only the registered member can vote
(e) Association member is not entitled to vote if he or she has an outstanding fee or payment
for more than 2 months.
(f) The Single Transferable Voting system focused primarily on an analogus representation and designated voting system which is deemed the system of voting of all executive positions within the Executive Committee.
(g) A winner may be declared in the first round of counting if a candidate passes the 51%
threshold in the elections
(h) Entry for the election shall be opened 3 months prior to the election. (i) Entry for the election shall be closed 3 weeks prior the election
(j) Winner shall be announced within 48 hours after the election.
(k) Delays in the announcement of the election winner shall be notified to the candidates and the Board of Directors.
Article XV. Association Structure
Section 15.01 The official structure for the association includes
(a) The President (b) Vice President (c) Secretary
(d) Treasurer
(e) Logistic Officer
(f) Regional Representative
(g) International Representative
(h) Convenors
(i) IT Officer
(j) University Representatives
(k) Board of Directors
Article XVI. Interpretation of Constitution
Section 16.01
(a) This Constitution can solely be interpreted by the Pacific Medical Student Association
(b) The constitution can be amended under the authority of the Board of Directors
(c) The changes in the constitution shall be decided in AGM through voting system.
(d) Any amendments made on the constitution shall be documented and attached as annexure
(e) The Association members are responsible for the upholding of legislation of the constitution at all times
(f) The Pacific Medical Student Association’s constitution should not be misinterpreted by a
single member or any other involved student on the basis of a personal agenda or issue.
(g) Any questions, concerns or queries regarding the constitution shall be forwarded to the executive committee and the Board of Directors.
Article XVII. Amendment of Constitution
Section 17.01
(a) Constitution may only be amended in accordance with the following provision:
(i) Any proposal for constitution changes shall be submitted to the trustees of the association
(ii) Proposal of the constitution shall be submitted to the trustees only if two thirds of the executive members agree on the proposal.
(iii) Approval shall be granted from the trustees for the proposal decision at the AGM (iv) The constitution shall only be amended by the general assembly if two third
members agree on the proposed amendments
Section 5.03 is not subject to any amendment or changes.
Article XVIII. Ratification of constitution
Section 18.01 Establishment
(a) This constitution shall be established through majority of the votes by the Pacific Medical
Student Association committee.
Section 18.02 Dissolution
(a) Two consecutive General meetings shall be conducted for the dissolution of the association.
(b) The Second General meeting shall be conducted 3 months apart from the initial meeting.
(c) The group may dissolve up voluntarily if at the second general meeting the resolution passes by a simple two thirds of majority votes.
(d) A proposal for dissolution shall be sent to all registered members at least 6 months prior to the initial meeting.
(e) At the conclusion of the dissolution, the committee shall distribute any assets to a similar association who support the medical student’s education.
(f) If any asset or funds are not distributed accordingly, legal action can be taken against the members involved in such an act.
Article XIX. Date of Ratification
Section 19.01 The Pacific Medical Student Association constitution was ratified on
11th October 2016 with the intention of preserving its objective and providing a means of guidance for all future members.
