The Brazilian naturalized Canadian, Kenny Pires Mendes, says Professor Kenny, has just been elected municipal councilor of the city of Santos, on the coast of São Paulo, for the Democratic Party. He attributes the victory and the encouragement to enter politics to his students. A university professor, the former soldier says the flag he will raise as a city councilor will be education.

Kenny arrived in Brazil at the age of six due to the illness of his mother, who received a medical recommendation to move to a country with warm temperatures. After his death, Kenny returned to Canada with his father and completed an engineering degree. From 1989 to 1994, he was a member of the peacekeeping force, serving in his country of birth. “While I was in the army, I traveled to Bosnia, Haiti, Somalia and Kuwait on peacekeeping missions,” he says.

Still in Canada, he married a Brazilian and returned to Brazil in 1994, where he still lives today. “I already consider myself a Brazilian, it’s the country I love, that’s why I entered politics,” reports the future adviser. The goal was achieved in the third election attempt, after reflecting on Brazil’s shortcomings. “I have traveled the world and Brazil is the most receptive country. The country is fantastic, the natural resources are endless. What ruins it, unfortunately, is politics. My dream was to live here with politics there, and little by little I want to change things,” says the professor.

Among plans for the next four years, Kenny says he will prioritize education. “My flag is education. I have been a teacher for 16 years, I have a dream related to education. Santos is developing rapidly, with the pre-salt basin, tourism and the world cup, many opportunities arise. will present, but the biggest problem is the lack of training. An idea that I want to put into practice is to transform municipal schools into community training centers during their free time, “says the elected official.

In addition to education, Professor Kenny also emphasizes environmental and cultural issues. The professor teaches English and French in technical terms for engineering, biology and pharmacy courses at Universidade Santa Cecília (UniSanta). Kenny also gives voluntary language lessons to young people in the hills of Santos.

Kenny explains that he decided to go into politics because of the students, who always encouraged him. “I usually talk to my students in class and we form a great friendship. I used to say that in Canada it works and they always joke that I should be a politician, mayor or president, so that here it is like Canada. It has been nourishing, as well as my dissatisfaction with politics. My biggest supporters have certainly been my students. About 99% of them and 1% of my dissatisfaction,” he says.

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