Young Mayor

Shahanara Begum: Nahimul Islam, 15, from Wapping won the young mayoral election with 2,004 votes. His deputies will be Tasmina Khanum, 15, from Bow and Nadeem Miah, 15, from Brick Lane who got 1,175 and 754 votes respectively. The Young Mayor Inauguration was held onWednesday at the Tower Hamlets Town Hall.

In attendance were Mayor Lutfur and  elected Members as special guests and the  event was overseen by Council officials including Chief Executive Kevan Collins. Nahimul who attends Raines Foundation School is involved in the Youth Council and Youth Opportunity Fund and his targets as a Young Mayor will be to narrow the attainment gap through accreditations, help young people into education, training and work through Olympic volunteering and jobs as well as improving community relations.

Tasmina Khanum attends Central Foundation and enjoys playing volleyball says her priorities will be to promote further education for girls, improve existing facilities for young people and encourage young and older people to work together to make communities safer. Nadeem Miah a student of Stepney Green School is an avid Manchester United fan says his areas of interest are to provide more opportunities for young people, promote healthy living and reduce crime. The previous Mayor was Landry Adelard who ran for one year with the support of five deputies. The new Young Mayoral system from this year will be for a two year term with the support of two deputy mayors.

18 prospective candidates put themselves forward for the Young Mayoral Election. 11- 18 year olds are eligible to partake in the Young Mayoral Election and the scheme is emulated in many other London boroughs. The election was very popular amongst young people with a turnout of 52% compared to the 25% turnout for the Executive Mayoral elections which won Mayor Lutfur his seat. Mayor Lutfur addressed the audience of parents and supporters as well as the hopeful candidates saying “education is the key to achieving our dreams and becoming successful”. He urged the young people present to respect their teachers and parents saying “they always want what is best for you”. Mayor Lutfur who took time out of his busy schedule to attend the inauguration said “I am very impressed with the enthusiasm shown by the young people, their keen interest in democracy and the community is
refreshing”.