The Voice newspaper has profiled rising Lib Dem star Yahaya Kiyingi, 20, today who is striving to become an MP at the next election.
The paper reports:
The political aspirant has caught the eye of top politicians such as Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg and his deputy Simon Hughes and will become the youngest ever parliamentary candidate, if all goes as he hopes.
He will also become the party’s first African MP if he wins his fight for a north London seat in 2015.
In fact, Kiyingi became an approved parliamentary candidate even before he was eligible to vote.
I wish him well. He spoke very well at the recent Big Debate in front of a crowded hall of young people in parliament recently and is coming across as a man of integrity as well as intellect.
But while positive press is, well, positive, I have witnessed over the years several Black politicians of all parties lauded as the Great Hope yet struggled to keep the momentum going. David Lammy is the obvious one.
Clearly expectations can be a two-edged sword and keeping it perpetually swinging in your favour is a difficult trick, especially when it encourages jealous all-comers to come and take a pop!
The challenges ahead will be a test of his mettle but he may well be up for it and continue to impress the Westminster village.
The Lib Dems certainly need Kiyingi and many others from Black communities, who have a massive contribution to make to politics in general but also to reflect a more diverse image and bring experiences and perspectives that are currently thin on the ground in the Commons.
By Lester Holloway @brolezholloway
