They want to separate themselves from agricultural science, where they accuse corruption

Veterinary students at UNSM demand independence

A group of students from the Vocational School of Veterinary Medicine at the National University of San Martin have raised their voice in protest, demanding that they expel themselves from the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences. The students point to the two principals, Dean Carlos Rengifo Saavedra and School Director Orlando Ríos Ramírez, as the main obstacles to their demands for independence. In addition, they question the delay in delivering certificates, noting that agricultural engineering students have priority.

Carolina Rocha Lopez, a veterinary medicine student, and a group of students accuse the college administration of focusing on favoring the specialty of agricultural engineering, and leaving veterinary medicine abandoned. One of the most important points is the lack of resources, which, according to the complainants, are exclusively intended for agricultural engineering students, thus alienating veterinary students.

In this context, students criticized the recent establishment of the Federal College Center, which they described as a unilateral and authoritarian process. They point out that there was no participation of veterinary students in the election of representatives, accusing Sofía Ruiz Rodríguez of being imposed as president of the federal center without consensus. Just as student Carlos Martin Garcia Garcia said.

According to the complainants, the student Ruiz Rodríguez not only occupied this position arbitrarily, but also forced the students to wear the insignia of the “AMIGOS” faction, which supports the candidacy of Orlando Ríos for the position of vice rector of the university. A link that would have led to his preference for the “range of jobs” that UNSM has to offer to low-income students. However, it benefits from a “job exchange,” as Normando Rengifo, a first-year veterinary medicine student, pointed out.

This whole situation has generated discomfort among students, who are demanding a restructuring that allows them to have greater autonomy and representation within the university. Meanwhile, the relevant authorities did not comment on these complaints, which led to increased tension between different student groups.

The conflict between veterinary students and the authorities of the UNSM Faculty of Agricultural Sciences highlights a series of structural and administrative problems that are not limited to this institution. Disagreement over school autonomy and complaints of favoritism toward agriculture majors reflect an imbalance in the distribution of resources and a disconnect between student demands.

From a critical perspective, it is worrying that students of veterinary medicine, a profession so important for the development of productive sectors and public health, feel that they have been relegated to an inferior status. (Cesar Gonzaga)