Sajjad Hussain hopes to become a Councillor in Roscommon
A Pakistani barber is running for Roscommon County Council in the local elections this May
Sajjad Hussain is a Pakistani barber in Ballaghaderreen, running for Roscommon County Council.
The 42-year-old has been living and working in Ireland for the last 19 years.
If elected, he would be the first Asian person ever to sit on the local authority in Co. Roscommon.
That would be lovely you know. But I will focus more on what improvement I can do.
Saj, as he is better known, came to Ireland almost 19 years ago on a work permit. He applied for citizenship after five years, eventually being awarded it in 2010. Initially, he lived in Dublin before moving to Co. Roscommon where he lives with his wife and three young children. Ballaghaderreen is a small town off the old N5 near the border with Sligo and Mayo. It has a population of just over 1800 people.
Ballaghaderreen and these areas are neglected badly you know. So I want to improve the things in this area.
There are currently six sitting councilors on the Roscommon County Council. Saj says he will run as a non-party candidate in the local elections in May of this year.
To hear more about Saj's unique story, listen to the podcast below by reporter Aideen Finnegan:
