The local election in Cork turned heads when a 46-year-old immigrant from Cameroon, once seeking asylum and now a local postman, achieved not only the distinction of being the first person of colour to occupy a seat on Cork City Council, but was also appointed as the Deputy Lord Mayor of Cork on his first day of council duty.
The honour fell upon Cllr Honore Kamegni (the ‘g’ is silent), having been elected a fortnight earlier on behalf of the Green Party, representing Cork City Council’s South East Ward. Honore secured the position of Deputy Lord Mayor, defeating Sinn Féin’s Cllr Kenneth Collins with a majority of 23 votes against seven.
Born in Cameroon, Honore was emotionally flooded by a wave of congratulatory messages on his appointment, as he gracefully accepted the Deputy Lord Mayor’s chain from his predecessor Cllr Colette Finn, and posed alongside his loved ones for celebratory snapshots. The event was doubly historic as Cllr Dan Boyle, from Honore’s own Green Party, was announced as the Lord Mayor.
Honore recounted fleeing Bafang in western Cameroon to evade persecution and pursue a better quality of life. His journey as an asylum seeker led him to Ireland in 2002, where he first arrived in Waterford and later relocated to Cork in 2005. It was in Cork where he settled down with his wife Viviane and their two daughters, Sonia and Paris, now aged 20 and 16 respectively. His job, delivering post in Douglas and Rochestown, served him significantly well when he decided to run for election.
While Honore has always been a Green Party supporter, it wasn’t till 2022 that he decided to actively participate, driven by his goal to make Cork a better place for everyone and safeguard the planet for his children and future generations.
His motivation originated in 2022, following an online viewing of a council session on YouTube. Struck by the glaring void of diversity and the absence of black faces within the council, Honore decided he had to enact change and hence, he commenced his political journey.
Provided the opportunity to stand as a candidate for the Green Party by the party’s Cork Chairman, Eoin Murphy, Honore plunged headlong into the colossal task of making his presence known to the 34,000 constituents residing in areas such as Blackrock, Mahon, Ballinlough, Ballintemple, Douglas, Grange, Frankfield and Rochestown.
Taking to the streets in April 2023, he recalled thinking to himself, ‘I’m a fresh face to these voters, a debutant in this political race. My only real shot at success lies in engaging people in conversation, in becoming familiar to local residents, and in turn, letting them become familiar with me’. Consequently, the door-to-door campaign ensued.
From quiet rural corners to bustling city centres, Honore made a point of knocking on every door he came across – estimating that he called on some 15,000 homes, with multiple visits in some cases. In addition to this, he reportedly distributed over 20,000 informational pamphlets in this period. Limiting himself to no weekends or public holidays off, he remained undeterred by any climatic adversities, be it downpours, gusts of wind or snowstorms. The number of kilometres he covered is unknown, but he believes that’s inconsequential now because the painstaking effort yielded fruitful results. On June 10th, 2024, he made history by becoming the first black member of Cork City Council.
In expressing his unlimited gratitude to his wife Viviane and his daughters, Sonia and Paris, for their ceaseless support, as well as his industrious campaign team, Honore expressed a sincere hope that his groundbreaking election would pave the way for future generations from diverse backgrounds.
Vouching his pride in becoming the first black person to be a part of the Cork City Council, and indeed in achieving this as a member of the Green Party, he also took the opportunity to highlight the importance of addressing urgent global concerns such as the existential threat of climate change, emphasising that its significance must not be lost amid other pressing issues in the world today.