Ayodele Roach

“I REALISE that if young people don’t get up and go after what we want, then our problems will not be solved,” said 19-year-old Ayodele Roach.

In fact, at this age, she has confidently illustrated that if youth want a seat at the table, they must actively pursue it because it will not be served to them on a silver platter.

During the recently concluded Local Government Elections (LGEs), she ran as the Proportional Representation (PR) candidate for the Alliance for Change (AFC) political party and was later sworn in as a councillor to the Georgetown Mayor and City Council. She is the youngest person on the council presently.

The young woman related: “Contesting this election was my first step in being the change I wish to see, [which was] to give me the perfect stage to stand on and advocate for youth to get more involved in politics and more involved in controlling their future.”

According to her, the political arena in Guyana is filled with older persons and though they might try to represent all citizens fairly, youth should be the ones representing youth.

Added to that, she said that she wanted her fellow young people to understand the importance of exercising their democratic right- and then actually exercising their democratic right. Her sheer love for politics also drove her to direct all her efforts in this regard.

During the LGE campaign trail, she worked tirelessly volunteering and campaigning. “With this experience, I learned the importance of LGEs and the process a political party or independent candidate must complete,” Roach shared.

But this was not the first time she has volunteered her time and service. In fact, you could even say that she is obsessed with volunteering.

“My passion for volunteerism is something I love to say I was born with,” she said, but explained that it really developed when in her first year of the Christ Church High School. By Second Form, she had already made her mark and was elected the youngest President of the school’s Interact Club- where she served for three years.

In 2017, she was selected as a Youth Ambassador to represent Guyana on a cultural exchange visit to the USA for three weeks.

“Being involved from such an early age in representing myself, country and school led to me seeing the need and importance of youth involvement within any nation, especially Guyana,” she recollected.

For her, however, these are not mere achievements for her to brag about, but instead, she said: “It served as a stepping stone in becoming the person I am today and the person I want to grow into tomorrow and it helped me to create a passion for helping others.”

And adding to all of this, she recently graduated from St Rose’s High School with an Associates Degree in Law and is a first-year student at the University of Guyana (UG) pursuing her Undergraduate Degree in International Relations.

As Roach will now strive to work as a councillor, in the best interest of the constituents of Georgetown, she said that she will always strive to ensure that she does her best.

“In 2019, I will continue this journey of making Guyana a better place and the journey in fighting for youths to be involved in decision-making by being given seats at the table,” she affirmed.