Jeniece, a voice for youths

JENIECE SCOTT, 23, was sworn in as the youngest member of the new Arima Borough Council on December 10.

Elected for the district of Calvary in the December 2 local government polls, she represented the People’s National Movement (PNM) as the youngest candidate in Arima.

Scott shared the story of her journey in politics with Newsday, her expected focus areas during her three-year councillor term and vision for young people in the national decision-making process.

“I have always been involved in youth work in Arima and to a larger extent TT. This (being elected a councillor) is a very natural progression for me, as it’s allowing me now to be able to contribute to my community.”

Engaged in the PNM since she was 12, she developed a passion for politics when she realised it could be an avenue for helping to uplift and develop her Calvary community.

Throughout her teenage years at Bishop Anstey High School, Port of Spain, she spent her spare time volunteering in the PNM. She is the current vice chairman of PNM party group one, has served on the party’s National Youth League and is a former chairman of the Arima Youth League.

It was while she was doing a BSc in leadership and management with a minor in psychology, at the University of the West Indies (UWI) St Augustine, that she realised her true calling was politics. “My degree really opened me to seeing how representation and effective organisations will be able to work hand in hand to better our community.”

She tested her leadership skills at UWI when she campaigned successfully to be national affairs committee chairperson on the UWI Guild of Students.

She dealt with issues of security, community outreach and culture. Describing the UWI guild as a smaller version of national politics, she credits it as one of the opportunities she used to hone her leadership skills.

“It really gave me the opportunity to ensure the type of representation that I want to give people. On the guild we were required to have constant accessibility to persons and had to make sure that our processes were transparent because we wanted to give persons a greater level of governance, which was the goal.”

Already actively involved in the PNM’s Arima youth work, and not fazed by age, she offered herself as a candidate for the local government elections when nominations opened. Asked what motivated her, she said, “I just think that it’s time for our (youth) perspective to be represented in the ways that our communities are being pushed forward. “The thing with representation is that it is such a powerful tool to make sure that voices are heard, and voices are taken into consideration within the decision-making process.”

Thanking the PNM leadership for believing in her and other young candidates, she said, “PNM would have had an upsurge in the number of young persons being put forward to the election.

“I think it’s a great thing to see that representation is such a strong part of the policy development. I think that I have a unique and wonderful position to be able to lend that representation as young person.”

She also credits a large part of her success to a fellow Arima Central councillor, mayor Lisa Morris-Julian.

“I was blessed to have a mentor in Her Worship, councillor Lisa Morris-Julian, who always supported me and gave me that opportunity to learn and grow. That’s why I feel very confident, coming in as a 23-year-old, to be able to make positive steps within my community.”

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She said she enjoyed the election trail. “I was telling someone (before this interview) that I have been involved in numerous elections, even from a small age, so it was not as hard.

“It was very worthwhile because the part I enjoyed the most about it was meeting the residents and seeing what their issues are and having my mind constantly working to see how we can find ways of dealing with whatever situation may arise.”

Now that the dust has settled on the election trail, she is looking forward to getting to work.

“What I’m looking forward to is seeing the youth and female perspective being represented within the policy framework that will be developed out of this term in council.

“What we need to be able to do is align policies to ensure that their homes are in a much better position for progress and development.

“We have so many young persons coming out of these households that our society needs to pay attention to.”

To accomplish these goals, she plans to partner with the ministries responsible for social services. She also plans to ensure the Arima Borough Council’s policies are aligned to women and youth in a participatory approach.

She encourages other young people who want to serve the nation not to be fazed, even if they may be dissatisfied with what is perceived to be a two-party system in national politics.

“Service comes in many different forms. There is not one way or one direction to go with service. Once your love for community is strong and you love the area that you are in, you would find multiple ways of getting involved.

“What I suggest to young people is: find whatever way, if it means starting an NGO, village council or whatever you can do, within your skill set. At the end of the day it’s all for seeing our communities progress.”

She’s eager to help other young people to get involved.

“If I see potential and I see that there’s a willingness to get involved (in politics), I always make myself available to speak to them and guide them.

“I think that is such a powerful tool, having an actual ally…so that is what I intend to do moving forward, as I have always exercised that partnership with young people.”

Of her future aspirations, she said, “I am someone who is willing to serve within any capacity, and however God directs my path, and the party wishes me to serve, that is how I will do it.

“I am currently focused on making sure that my community is in a much better position than it is in right now.”

And it is in local government that she is content to serve at the moment, because she recognises its importance.

“Local government is where your heart and your feet are grounded and rooted within the community.

“I think that the importance of local government really should be echoed throughout the country…at the end of the day, if your garbage is not collected, if your street lights are down or whatever the case may be, it is your local government representatives who are mandated by the constitution to deal with these issues.”