Civil Engineering nOVEMBER 2021 | Vol 29 No 10

Civil Engineering November 2021 59 T he current SAICE Constitution was approved in 2005 and modified slightly in 2014 to make allowance for requirements of South African tax legislation. The Constitution then under- went a major change late in 2017, voted for by Corporate Members and adopted in early 2018. At the most recent Council meeting, held on 12October 2021, an amendment to the Constitution was proposed by the Executive Board and approved by Council for submission to Corporate Members for a ballot. Clause 2.9.1.3 of the SAICE Constitution states: A Member is admitted according to the processes outlined in the By- laws and is at the time of admission actively engaged in civil engineering and either holds an academic qualification from a tertiary edu- cational institution recognised for this purpose by the Council, or is a corporate member of an engineering institution or society recognised for this purpose by the Council, and is professionally registered with a statutory body or international body recognised for this purpose by the Council. The proposed amendment would revise clause 2.9.1.3 of the SAICE Constitution to the following: A Member is admitted according to the processes outlined in the By- laws and is at the time of admission actively engaged in civil engineering and either holds an academic qualification from a tertiary edu- cational institution recognised for this purpose by the Council, or is a corporate member of an engineering institution or society recognised for this purpose by the Council, and is professionally registered with a statutory body or international body recognised for this purpose by the Council or holds a professorship in any field of civil engineering or related field at a South African higher education institution . The proposed change had previously served at Executive Board and was ap- proved but was never referred to Council for approval. The reason for the change, which has been applied in practice for a number of years, is because the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) has made it increasingly difficult for academics to achieve professional registration. The College of Fellows has recognised academic excellence in the past by acknowledging those in a professorial role as being equivalent to someone who is registered. The proposed change to clause 2.9.1.3 of the Constitution would ensure that the Constitution is in accordance with what has been the practice for several years. VOTING Please be reminded that Constitution matters are voted on by SAICE Corporate Members (in good standing), By-laws are voted on by Council, and Rules are ap- proved by the Executive Board. Only this one Constitutional change is being put to members for consideration now. Corporate Members will be requested to vote for the acceptance or otherwise of this amendment to the Constitution (2018) in accordance with their consti- tutional rights. Such secret ballot shall be conducted electronically during December 2021. Vishaal Lutchman Chief Executive Officer South African Institution of Civil Engineering Notification of proposed ballot to revise clause 2.9.1.3 of the SAICE Constitution