George Junior City Councillor (JCC) Matthew Taylor proudly represented George Municipality at the first-ever Western Cape Boys’ Parliament, hosted by the Western Cape Provincial Parliament (WCPP) for representatives in George and Provincial Parliament representatives and organisations across the Western Cape online via Teams recently.
The sitting brought together young men from across the province, drawn from leadership structures such as Representative Councils of Learners, Junior City Councils, Chrysalis Academy, Yeboneers, PAY Interns and other community organisations.
With the theme “Breaking out of the boy code: Growing boys as champions for change”, the young leaders debated important questions on gender equality and respect. They were challenged to reflect on their role in creating safer communities, breaking harmful gender stereotypes, and standing up for equality between boys and girls.
The session was addressed by the Speaker of the Provincial Parliament, Hon. Daylin Mitchell, Deputy Speaker Hon. Reagen Allen, Chief Whip Hon. Gilion Bosman and Leader of the Official Opposition, Hon. Khalid Sayed. Each young participant was given five minutes to present their views and solutions.
Matthew Taylor was nominated by his peers to speak on behalf of the George JCC. He highlighted the responsibility of young leaders to influence change, foster equality, and help build a society where respect and fairness are the norm.
The George JCC delegation was supported on the day by Councillors Melvin Roelfse and Thandiswa Qatana, as well as Director Bevan Ellman and Jonel Kerspuy from the Municipality’s Community Development department Youth Development subsection.
George Municipality congratulated Matthew on this achievement and thanked the JCC members for representing the city with passion and commitment.
