Ryan Ahmad, a Pakistani origin bartender from east London, is one of the many aspirants eying the coveted post of the Oxford University’s chancellor, claiming to be better than all others in race.
Ahmad, who has filed his nomination papers for the varsity’s chancellor election and awaits confirmation in October, said he is even better than Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, who is also running in the race while being incarcerated behind bars at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.
In an interview to Geo News, the young aspiring candidate said: “I understand local and international issues better.”
When asked about the realistic chance of his success in the election race given his candidacy alongside some big names including British politicians Peter Mandelson and William Hague; and Elish Angiolini, the university’s Pro Vice Chancellor Lady, among others, Ahmed said: “It all depends on how much traction and publicity I can get.
Ahmed, a bartender, who has complained about not getting coverage following his candidacy for the post in comparison to others in the race, maintained that the other candidates do not have the experience that he does.
Ahmad claims he can bring change by becoming the chancellor of Oxford University.
“Power dynamics and power politics are abound the world over,” he said, adding that some people play by the rules while others don’t.
The young candidate, who has a history of being part of community projects, is in the race of the top position at Oxford alongside major names including that of Khan who, while being behind bars in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, submitted his nomination papers at the varsity.
PTI’s incarcerated founder said the university helped him in his early years and he wanted to “give back”.
“I am committed to giving back to the world the resilience, determination and integrity that life has taught me, even when the odds are stacked against me,” stated the former prime minister.
However, the move drew backlash with the university sources confirming that its office has received several emails raising concerns about Khan’s nomination owing to his support for the Taliban in the past as well as the corruption cases against him.
In an article published in The Guardian on Sunday, its regular columnist Catherine Bennett wrote that the deposed prime minister had once called Osama bin Laden a “martyr” and refused to call him a terrorist.
She asked what kind of impact a person like the PTI founder would create on a UK academic career for saying that the Taliban were “breaking the shackles of slavery” when they deposed the Afghan government and took over Kabul, including providing excuses for the Taliban’s ban on women’s education.