By Tamkeen Shaikh
One of the most common questions asked to me is “Why The Conservative Party?” My answer, which some find surprising, is that the Conservative Party is the only party that unites the country, and believes in equality by creating opportunity for all.
It’s the Conservative Party that treats the people equally before the law. I believe in the moral, legal, and political equality before the law and so does the Conservative Party. We never would want to leave anyone behind.
I am most passionate about creating opportunity by providing people with excellent education and training opportunities and supporting small businesses which in turn boosts the economy, enabling people to succeed.
With that belief and faith, I joined the Party in 2015. In Barking, which is the heartland of Labour, supporting the Conservative Party was very uncommon. However, I was determined that Barking and its residents deserved better.
I was born in India, graduated in Accountancy & Statistics, after which I became a journalist. I always dreamt to visit other parts of the world, so 17 years ago I moved to London to pursue my Masters and I fell in love with the city. Since joining the Conservative Party there has been no looking back, I was first elected as Deputy Chair Political in 2016 for The Barking Conservative Association and later in 2018 as Chair. I quickly understood that funding is the key for any association to be successful. I decided to run a membership drive and hold fundraising events. Barking held its first ever fundraiser organised by the Association, well-supported by neighbouring associations.
With a strong belief in Conservatism, during the General Elections 2019, I stood as Parliamentary candidate for Barking and increased the vote share by 4%.. Online abuse is something that has become very common. Standing as Parliamentary candidate, I experienced this first hand, with some people taking things beyond the pale. I received some messages saying that “I was a sell out”, “You will burn in hell fire”, and was also accused of taking money, all because I was a member of the Conservative Party.
I was angry and upset to read these messages but they were of course unfounded accusations, and I saw them as a political attack to bring me down. I decided to move on without wasting more time on it. I am working on breaking down barriers and the only way to respond to such attacks was to carry on with what I was doing. Empowering people and speaking my mind fearlessly.
Standing as a candidate in the general election taught me a lot. The biggest lesson that I learnt was to 'Filter, ignore and move on.'
After moving to Southend in 2019, last year I stood as a councillor candidate in Southend, as soon as I posted this on social media the abuse began again, with comments that I was an extremist because I wear a hijab, which I do out of choice. This time I decided to call out the perpetrator. The support from Southend Conservative group, from the public, local MPs and of course my friends and family was unbelievable. It gave me so much strength and confidence to fight against such negativity.
Despite accusations of Islamophobia against the Party, my hijab has never been an obstacle in my political career. The Conservative Party has welcomed me with open arms and I have never experienced any discrimination. Equality is something that society as a whole is fighting for and we Conservatives are at the forefront of that effort. To take this forward, I have joined the Conservatives Against Racism for Equality (CARE), a Conservative group that firmly believes in equality.
Apart from politics, I have a huge interest in working with all communities, to build a more cohesive society. With Barking being one of the deprived areas of London, homelessness is something that needs to be addressed and we must all play our part. Lat year, I was part of an initiative to give a Christmas meal to the homeless. I not only prepared, but also served the meal at ‘The Barking Salvation Army”. This was a great success and really helped to build some community spirit.
Last but not the least, after a long day of canvassing when I return home its very rewarding to hear my 8-year old daughter say to me, “Mama I am so proud of you.” It just empowers me to strive even more harder and gives me the assurance that nothing is impossible.
Hard work and perseverance can achieve anything in life… We all are humans no one less or more than the other.
