In early April, he won the elections for the Territorial Youth Council (CTJ) by a landslide and became its president. Already an executive member of the previous council, the young man impresses with a seemingly unwavering commitment to the island's youth.
If Jahid seems reserved at first, don't be fooled! A very good student, the 17-year-old high schooler admits with a smile that talking is his biggest weakness. "I'm a very sociable person, I talk a lot, maybe too much, but we'll laugh about it later!" It's hard not to love talking when you're the son of the founder and host of "SOS Radio." His father, Jacques Hamlet, has hosted a current affairs talk show there since 2009, the year Jahid was born... and the year the station was founded.
The young man inherited not only his father's love of conversation but also his interest in politics. The radio host has run twice for both legislative and territorial elections. While Jahid plans to pursue business studies after preparatory classes in Guadeloupe—with his sights set on HEC Paris or Montreal—he doesn't rule out a future in politics. "Maybe I'll be a senator, a member of parliament, president, who knows what the future holds?" he says with a laugh.
Uniting the island's youth
He impressed everyone during his election with a well-structured and brilliantly delivered speech. Quoting Nelson Mandela in his introduction – “It always seems impossible until it’s done” – Jahid emphasized the challenges faced by the previous administration and how they had overcome them together. This experience and his involvement with the previous council proved decisive in the vote (17 out of 28 votes). Jahid comes across as a young man who doesn't give up in the face of adversity, living up to his name, which means “the one who strives, the one who fights.”
His determination was also evident after his defeat in the previous election two years ago. Far from being discouraged, he dedicated himself to a major reform: amending the CTJ charter to allow for the integration of alternate members in the event of an executive member's departure. This adjustment was crucial after a term that ended with only 10 active members out of 23.
Among his priorities: strengthening ties with the other side of the island through a joint commission with the Sint Maarten Youth Parliament: "We are one youth, and it's this aspect that we need to try to restore," he insists. With the other members, he also worked during the April holidays on various projects and launched a "youth information commission" designed to facilitate communication between young people and the CTJ (Youth Technical Committee). To this end, Jahid is already envisioning a QR code "where young people can ask their questions, without having to wait to meet us."
If he had to summarize his project for the next two years, Jahid chooses the words: "commitment and fraternity", and sincerely hopes to become an effective intermediary between the youth and the political representatives of the island. _DR
