SHANIQUE Green is still celebrating her victory in the February 26 Local Government Elections as it fulfils a dream she said was inspired by the work of Portland Eastern Member of Parliament (MP) Ann-Marie Vaz.

The first-time Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) councillor-elect garnered 1,467 votes to win the Fellowship Division in Rio Grande Valley over the People’s National Party’s Colin Bell, who received 1,332 votes and was also facing the electorate for the time.

“I am humbled. I am honestly lost for words when it comes to the feeling after the victory because you’re working for it, you prepare for it — you do everything — and to see it happen, I have no words to describe the level of joy I feel,” Green told the Jamaica Observer last week.

The 30-year-old — who earned a degree in urban and regional planning from University of Technology, Jamaica in 2016 — said she moved back to Portland after graduating in order to start her own business, and witnessed first-hand Vaz, also known as ‘Action Ann’, at work in the constituency she won in the 2019 by-election, following the death of former MP Dr Lynvale Bloomfield.

“I liked what she was doing; it was progress for the parish. And it was encouraging to see a woman taking charge and making a difference so I decided I wanted to be on her team,” Green told the Sunday Observer.

The young politician shared that she worked as Vaz’s Constituency Development Fund officer and was also the JLP liaison officer for the division, working closely with then Councillor Irvin “Louie” Brown.

Brown’s passing in 2021, reportedly due to complications from COVID-19, created a vacancy in the Fellowship Division and Green, driven to continue her work on a larger scale, expressed an interest in contesting the position.

“Initially not everybody was in agreement with me in the seat but over time, getting to know me, building trust, and seeing the work that I have put in, everybody rallied around me. If it wasn’t for the workers and supporters, none of this would have been possible,” she told the
Sunday Observer.

“I just want to thank the residents from the bottom of my heart because I am not from the Rio Grande Valley — I live in Port Antonio — but they welcomed me with open arms. They rallied around me. The workers of the JLP supported me 100 per cent,” Green said, adding that Vaz and her husband Daryl, the MP for Portland Western, were her biggest supporters.

Green was among four first-time candidates elected by the JLP to contest the five divisions in Portland Eastern.

“I just want to thank everyone who came out to work and vote. I want them to know that I am committed more than ever to their development and doing whatever I can. They know this. They know that I am very accessible. I am in it 100 per cent,” she said.

“Their support is encouraging because it’s a sign that people are putting their trust in younger people, and I think we need that in politics nowadays. We need fresh people and fresh ideas — not that we are pushing aside the older folks, because you know we need experience as well, but it’s encouraging to know that we’re stepping into that direction,” she reasoned.

Asked about her plans for the division, Green said she aims to continue improving infrastructure and skills training for residents.

“Currently, the Rio Grande Valley needs infrastructure development, training for the youth, and agricultural development. We need to expand and increase production. Different farming practices also need to be updated, and there needs to be more skills training. I also want to create more job opportunities. These are the things that we want to focus on for the next four years,” she told the Sunday Observer.