The Motley Crew
Lovin it!Last night I attended a brainstorming session with potential Green candidates for the local and general elections in 2010.
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I have never been amongst any more committed and deserving people with such strong community focus - even though I have been with the Labour party and the Conservatives. It made a real change from the "dirty tricks" politics that made me want to leave other groups. The whole session was based on how to get involved in the community, how to promote the work we undertake, and how to ensure our casework was both relevant and in demand. all in all it was very valuable session and I believe that many of the faces you see in the images above will be the budding political stars of the future.
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Besides, there cannot be a more vibrant selection of talented representatives in any of the other parties - what say you?
I say...hang on, did you wait for me to leave before you took the photo? :)
ReplyDeleteMatt
Dirty tricks?
ReplyDeleteYou left the Conservatives, and joined Labour, very shortly after the Conservatives declined to grant you recognition as a person suitable to be a party candidate at council elections. And you left Labour after failing to secure election as one of their candidates in 2006.
So, dirty tricks? Is that the same thing as an ego-trip?
Hi Matt,
ReplyDeleteApologies, a few of you left to soon for me to get working with the camera.
Cont...
ReplyDeleteAfter leaving the auspices of the Tory Group (within a month of joining the Labour Party) I found myself being coerced to stand in the 2006 election (another fact you seem to have been rather discombobulated with). I stood in Chadwell and served a community with hard endeavour and in only a six month period, I more than doubled the previous Labour vote. In a ward that initially needed a 36% swing and was regarded by many as unwinnable, I managed to beat the BNP into last place. I was the only Labour Candidate in an unwinnable ward to do so and we were expecting much worse results. I was only a few votes away from ousting one of the Conservative candidates from their usual 6th Place. I left the Labour Party when no support was offered to me, I had to deliver whole ward newsletters myself, printed them myself, funded most myself (or gained sponsorships) and everytime I worked on local projects they were completed singularly by me. At a number of public arguments (Area 5 and 6 Committees) in which I saw Labour cronies funding large sums to very insular groups and not funding more inclusive groups, based much on personal cultural bias. I also felt the Labour Party was losing its socialist principles nationally and was uncomfortable with agendas such as; women only candidacy (not based on merit) and support for the profligate Tory proposal for an Olympic sized Swimming Pool rather than a more rational parsimonious design _ which the Public have now started to Clamour for (I raised the issue in 2006 and was shot down by Labour members as they felt the Benefit to Ilford South outweighed rational thought?). Tired of rather incompetent leadership - I joined the more supportive and sensible Green Party.
I feel very comfortable where I am and have for the first time since Simon Green, met with someone with whom I feel comfortable with being mentored. For your information that is the most excellent Alan Howe and I hope to prove to everyone, that I have not been changing parties due to want of position but to find a group that I feel comfortable with. The only similarity between the two of these juxtaposed personalities is the association derived with ones political ideologies and the others surname I know – but that will do for me. By the way Alan, thanks for your support!
Glad you found the training evening useful!
ReplyDeleteMorris Hickey @ 25 November 2009 22:25
ReplyDeleteThat Mr Chowdhry has chosen to join the Greens, a party who have not yet established themselves in Redbridge and have never won a seat here, indicates to me a Politics of Conviction rather than Convenience (no pun intended).