PNM’s Sharon Archie wants to inspire Caroni East

PNM Caroni East candidate Sharon Archie -
PNM Caroni East candidate Sharon Archie -

Sharon Archie, the People’s National Movement (PNM) candidate for Caroni East, wants to be a roving politician.

“I think as the future MP for Caroni East I want to be a roving MP. This is something I want to introduce to TT.

“I don’t want to sit in an office and just do paperwork. I want to be with the people of Caroni East. I want to drive around and interact, speak to them,” she said in a phone interview with Newsday.

She sees this as the future of politics in TT.

“Politicians, whether we win, lose or draw, should continue caring about the people of TT.”

She plans to put up tents and meet with her constituents once a month to have them voice their concerns once she is successful in the August 10 general election.

The 49-year-old was born, grew up in and still lives in Cunupia. In fact, she describes herself as a seed of Caroni East.

The wife and mother of four was motivated to get into politics while caring for her son Elisha. He has cerebral palsy.

“I started getting involved in politics when I observed the needs of special needs children were being put on the back burner. I felt a deep intense passion to be the voice, especially for special needs people and special needs children.

“And I decided I wanted to get into politics. I may not be able to change TT, but I can change a small world for a small child, or maybe a few people.”

During her walkabouts in Caroni East she is supported by her husband, Dexter Archie. She also has the support of her children Shennel, Victoria, Joshua and Elisha.

She found the PNM to be the party through which she can achieve her political goals. For her “it embraces everyone” and provides many opportunities for young people and women.She has been a member of the party for over ten years.

In 2015, she became the social welfare officer of the party’s Caroni East constituency executive and then its secretary. In 2016 she was a local government candidate for Cunupia. She went on to become the assistant secretary of the PNM’s Women’s League.

Although she has no formal training in special needs, she would be willing to assist that group, if elected. Archie also wants to assist women.

While there is still a lot of work to be done with special needs children, she believes the PNM is the party to work with TT’s vulnerable groups.

Archie wants to stand up for the rights of the poor, needy and vulnerable because she came from a very poor family. She also wants to use her own story to inspire young women.

Her father could not afford to send her to do A-levels and she got a job and started working to pay for her education.

Archie’s formal training and education is in water resource management, and she hopes to develop a flood mitigation plan for Caroni East. She has worked for one of the largest public utilities organisations, she said.

She was trained in stormwater management in Ontario, Canada and has a masters in business administrationas well as a bachelors in information systems and management and water resources management from the University of London, and has practised hydrology for the past 30 years.

Caroni East is a flood-prone area, she points out, and while and while she has been walking through it for the last two months, “most of the cries of the residents have been (about) flooding, poor drainage and infrastructure.”

She said for 30-plus years Caroni East has been considered a United National Congress (UNC) stronghold, and she has seen neglect in the constituency for over 30 years.

“People in the rural areas have been abandoned...the people are frustrated, desperate and crying out for help,” she added.

She said there were people in Caroni East who did not have computers or internet access and were not aware of the opportunities available to them.

“I don’t want the people to come to me, I want to go to the people,” she stressed.

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