Oldham Mayor is making the most of his 'once in a lifetime opportunity'

He's now half-way through his year in office as the Mayor of Oldham, but Councillor Javid Iqbal is still learning and still in shock after being nominated for the role in the first place.

It’s been quite a journey for the Werneth ward councillor – Oldham’s 45th Mayor of the borough.

Born in Kashmir, Cllr Iqbal first arrived in the UK as a three-year-old back in 1967.

His late father set up Oldham's first Asian grocery store, on Manchester Street, soon after, but after working there and dropping out of College,

Cllr Iqbal decided to retrain – stating he needed to ‘re-engineer himself’ -  and eventually secured a BA Honours degree in IT from the Manchester Metropolitan University during the 1990s.

He has since enjoyed a successful career in the IT business, and is now midway through taking 12 months out of his current role at the British Council so he can fully concentrate on his Mayoral duties.

A former Security Supervisor - or 'doorman' - at clubs in Manchester, Cllr Iqbal was first elected in Werneth in 2007.

Cllr Iqbal said: “All I can say is wow! – what a steep learning curve it has been so far.

“When you become Mayor, you are totally overwhelmed with all the engagements and activities that are going on and it does take a few weeks to get your feet under the table, so to speak.

“You don’t realise what you’ve let yourself in for!

“There are no set structures in place – you need to create them yourself, with the help of friends and colleagues of course.

“There’s lots of balls to juggle at the same time so it is a lot more difficult than I expected, but don’t forget I’ve taken a year out from work to take on this role, so I’m determined to enjoy it.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that money can’t buy.

“I never, ever expected to be the Mayor of Oldham, but now I am, I’m loving every minute of it.

“I like to try and portray to the younger community – or anybody for that matter – that if you stay focused and determined, anybody can be the Mayor.”

Since taking office, Cllr Iqbal has placed heavy relevance on his charity activities, and to that end, he’s certainly made his mark in the town when dressing up as either Mr T, Kojak or wrestling legend and now movie star The Rock at numerous fund-raising activities and events.

His main ‘aspire to inspire’ charity pledge was to persuade 1,000 Oldham individuals or businesses to donate £100 each during his year in office.

Speaking while dressed as Mr T at our interview, Cllr Iqbal said: “I am trying to be a Mayor that’s a bit different, and most people are aware of my crazy outfits now.

“Whether I’m out there as Mr T, Kojak or The Rock, we have got a social media presence now, and that’s something of a first for Oldham.

“We want to raise money for lots of great causes, whether you’re involved in community walking, cycling, knitting or running.

“All I’m asking is for £100 from anybody.

“I’m trying to inspire 1,000 businesses or individuals to do that, and hopefully we’ll get there.

“We’ve got approximately £20,000 so far. We are bit behind schedule, but the majority of the bigger events are still to come before the end of my year in office (in May, 2019).”

Coming up on Cllr Iqbal’s packed fund-raising calendar is a photographic competition for under-16 and over-16s – ‘My Community’ – with some great prizes on offer.

He is then set for a swim challenge of 32 lengths alongside intrepid 80-year-old Vivien Wild, before taking in the 5k run at Dr Kershaws’ annual ‘Santa Dash’ run.

A fund-raising amateur boxing event is set to take place at the Millennium Centre in Werneth, while the big ‘do’ – the Mayor’s Annual Charity Ball – takes place in March.

Cllr Iqbal has proudly nominated five charities for particular support this Mayoral year – Dr Kershaw’s Hospice, MIND, Action Oldham Fund, Maggie’s Cancer Centre and St Thomas’s Church in Werneth.

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