- Mohammad Asghar
-
Mohammad Asghar AM 
Member of the Welsh Assembly
for South Wales EastIncumbent Assumed office
3 May 2007Preceded by Laura Anne Jones Personal details Born 30 September 1945
Peshawar, North West Frontier Province, British India
(Now in Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa, Pakistan)Political party Welsh Conservative Party Other political
affiliationsPlaid Cymru (until 2009)
Labour party (mid 1990's)Religion Islam Mohammad Asghar (born 30 September 1945),[1] known as Oscar,[2] is an Asian politician, who has been a member of the Conservative party, the Labour party, and Plaid Cymru. He came to prominence after being elected to the Welsh Assembly in 2007 as a member of Plaid Cymru on the list for South Wales East.[3] He is best known for being the first ethnic minority and Muslim member of the Assembly,[4] and being the first AM who was a member of a political party to defect to another party.
Contents
Background and career
Born in Peshawar, then in British India, he gained a BA from Peshawar University[1] before moving to Wales in order to complete a course in accountancy in Newport. Asghar initially joined the Conservative party, remaining a member for some two decades, later joining the Labour party in the 1990s.[5] He joined Plaid Cymru sometime after becoming Wales’ first Muslim councilor, representing Victoria ward on Newport City Council.[6] He has stood for Plaid Cymru in general elections. His daughter Natasha Asghar — central to several scandals involving her father's career — also stood as a Plaid Cymru candidate in the 2007 Elections,[7] and also joined the Conservative party at the same time he did so.[8]
On 8 December 2009, Asghar became the first AM to cross the floor, defecting from Plaid Cymru to the Conservative Party. He claimed that he felt "out of tune" with Plaid policies, described himself as a royalist and unionist,[9] and stated that he felt like "a little parrot in a jungle".[10] Plaid Cymru called on Asghar to resign his seat following his defection.[9]
Expenses scandal and corruption
In November 2010, Asghar was one of nine Conservative AMs accused of wrongly claiming expenses for an overnight hotel stay coinciding with the birthday of fellow Assembly member Nick Ramsay.[11]
Accusations of corruption were also leveled at Asghar due to the abnormal pay arrangements he has had with several of his staff, with two staff members remaining on permanent paid leave until the Welsh assembly was dissolved in 2011. Charges of nepotism have also been associated with his staff arrangements, with his daughter Natasha Asghar — who was explicitly banned from his employ by the Plaid Cymru leadership while he was a member of the party — becoming a paid member of his staff upon his defection to the Conservative party.[12] Asghar has gone on record as stating that MEP Jillian Evans offer to give this same daughter work experience was a significant factor in his decision to defect from the Labour party to Plaid Cymru.[5]
Controversy over 2011 election candidacy
In August 2010, Asghar was selected to stand for the Welsh Conservatives in the 2011 Welsh assembly election.[13] In September 2010 David Fouweather, the Chair of the South-East Wales Area Council of the Welsh Conservatives, called for a full investigation into events that preceded the endorsement of Mohammad Asghar as a regional list candidate.[14] In a letter to the Chair of the Welsh Conservatives, Fouweather wrote:
"There were numerous telephone calls made to myself by a representative of the party chairman’s office in London. These calls made it quite clear to me that Mohammad Asghar had to be re-adopted at all costs because of the embarrassment that it would create for the party."[14]"I was told that failure to re-adopt Mr Asghar could lead to my possible suspension from the party whilst an investigation was carried out to see if there were any racial motives for him not being adopted. This I found deeply offensive, resulting in a great deal of pressure being put upon me to deliver the desired outcome for the party hierarchy."[14]Following his call for an investigation into Asghar's selection, Fouweather was asked by the Conservative Party to stand down as Chair of the South-East Wales Area Council.[15]
References
- ^ a b "ASGHAR, Mohammad, "Who's Who 2009"". A & C Black, 2008. Online ed., Oxford: OUP. 2008. http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U246474. Retrieved January 4, 2009.
- ^ "Mohammed Asghar AM". National Assembly for Wales. http://www.assemblywales.org/memhome/mem-profile/mem-south_wales_east-2.htm. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
- ^ Labour given a bloody nose icWales, 4 May 2007
- ^ First ethnic minority AM elected BBC News, 4 May 2007
- ^ a b "Matt Withers: AM has been promiscuous with his political parties". Wales on Sunday. 2009-12-13. http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/columnists/2009/12/13/mat-withers-am-has-been-promiscuous-with-his-political-parties-91466-25379127/2/.
- ^ Gwent politician survives bomb attack, South Wales Argus, 19 October 2007.
- ^ Young Candidates, Plaid Cymru
- ^ http://www.conservatives.com/People/Welsh_Assembly_Members/Asghar_Mohammad.aspx
- ^ a b Plaid AM defects to Conservatives, BBC News online, 8 December 2009.
- ^ "Plaid Cymru AM joins the Conservatives", Walesonline.co.uk, 8 December 2009.
- ^ "Tory AMs accused of wasting money on 'boys on tour jolly'". Western Mail. 2010-11-10. http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/welsh-politics/welsh-politics-news/2010/11/10/tory-ams-accused-of-wasting-money-on-boys-on-tour-jolly-91466-27630300/.
- ^ "Daughter of AM who left Plaid to join the Tories is now on his staff". Western Mail. 2010-01-26. http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/01/26/daughter-of-am-who-left-plaid-to-join-the-tories-is-now-on-his-staff-91466-25683729/.
- ^ "Tories endorse Mohammad Asghar for 2011 regional list". BBC News. 2010-08-28. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-11119617.
- ^ a b c "Conservatives refuse to confirm role of London official in racism storm". Western Mail. 2010-09-17. http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/09/17/conservatives-refuse-to-confirm-role-of-london-official-in-racism-storm-91466-27284779/.
- ^ "Councillor sidelined over row". Western Mail. 2010-11-13. http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/11/13/councillor-sidelined-over-row-91466-27651063/.
Offices held
National Assembly for Wales Preceded by
Laura Anne JonesAssembly Member for South Wales East
2007–presentIncumbent Categories:- 1945 births
- Living people
- Plaid Cymru Members of the National Assembly for Wales
- Conservative Party Members of the National Assembly for Wales
- Councillors in Wales
- Welsh Muslims
- Welsh people of Pakistani descent
- Wales AMs 2007–2011
- Wales AMs 2011–
- Pakistani emigrants to the United Kingdom
- People from Peshawar
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