Pakistani Origin Sajid Javid Appointed As Britain’s Home Secretary
The advent of South Asians in the political scene on foreign shores is perhaps at its peak at the moment (till date). With the appointment of Mr. Sajid Javid, as the new Home Secretary of Britain, after the scandalous resignation of Amber Rudd for having misled lawmakers over deportation targets for illegal immigrants – the South Asians are time and again proving that they are pretty good in every game!
With the situation over the deportation of immigrants costing the seat of the former Home Secretary, it seems like British Prime Minister, Theresa May, has specifically chosen an immigrant as a mark to save face and in the hope that the Windrush scandal will not haunt her too much later.
Sajid Javid’s father was an immigrant from Pakistan who arrived in Britain with only £1 in his pocket. Working hard himself as a bus driver he inculcating in his son the conservative virtues of hard work and self-reliance. This propelled Javid on a meteoric career, first in the City and then in politics, and in short order to a place in Britain’s Cabinet.
Soon after his appointment, Javid said that the Windrush scandal felt “very personal” but urged people to concentrate on the government’s efforts to rectify the situation. Predictably, his first task will be to take off some political heat out of the whole scandal. In his press briefing, he said, “Making sure that we have an immigration policy that is fair, treats people with respect and with decency — that will be one of my most urgent tasks.”
Sajid Javid was a senior investment banker at the Deutsche Bank before becoming a Member of Parliament in 2010. He became a Treasury Minister in 2013 and joined the Cabinet in 2014 as the Culture Secretary, before switching to the Business Secretary in 2015 and Communities Secretary in 2016.
With the looming countdown to Brexit, Sajid Javid’s political ideology also becomes important here. He backed the losing ‘remain’ campaign in the 2016 referendum on its European Union membership, but his pro-EU position was lukewarm.
Our heartiest congratulations to Mr. Sajid Javid and we hope that more and more South Asians see such success around the world.
