Political science professor forms Congress of the People

Political science professor Sewlyn Samaroo has lived what he teaches by forming a political party in his home country of Trinidad.
Samaroo said he was exposed to politics as a child. Politicians would come visit at his house, and he was elected president of his Village Council as a teenager.
"I've always fought for the rights of people," Samaroo said.
In Trinidad, Samaroo said he was a senior paralegal at a law firm office, but he became disenchanted with law.
He then decided he wanted to study liberal arts in a country that had a different stream of thought than what he was used to.
"If America is the most powerful country in the world, it's only fair I get an education there," Samaroo said.
He attended Lee University with the goal of entering the ministry. It was at Lee University that he first studied politics, Samaroo said.
In June 2006, Samaroo returned to Trinidad, and he said he was not satisfied with the politics of the country.
He said the two political parties, People's National Movement and United National Congress, of which he was a member, were forgetting the people at the bottom.
"The politics of the UNC, in my view, had become irrelevant," Samaroo said.
No one seemed to care about the poor, and the young people were dissatisfied.
It was then that he decided to form a new political party, Congress of the People, and began the ground work for it, he said.
The first step was listening to the people, Samaroo said.
He held town hall meetings in his constituency, which is similar to a state, and then with people all over the country. Samaroo called it a "conversation with the people."
After listening to the people, a national convention was held for COP where he said thousands of people attended and demanded a new political movement.
Then, a constitution committee was formed. They met with various interest groups and wrote the party's constitution, he said.
Samaroo said when the constitution was written, it was brought before the people for approval, and a national council, the governing body of the party, was formed.
After the major political rally, the new party was announced and political administration groups were formed in the 41 constituencies, Samaroo said.
"I went on national prime time talk shows and talked about change and the need for change," Samaroo said. "The movement took on a life of its own from there."
He said it convinced the nation the movement was a good idea.
COP maintains ideologies from both the Republican and Democratic parties in America, but he said the party focuses heavily on women's rights.
He also said his party gives young people a voice because "they can make a difference."
"We bridge age, racial, ethnic and socials gaps in the political divide," Samaroo said.
He said the future for COP is very bright.
The opposing parties are in a state of crisis due to corruption, and their support is dwindling, while COP is seeing an increase in membership, Samaroo said.
"It is my belief that we will form the next government of Trinidad," he said.
The next election in Trinidad is 2012. Samaroo said he will not run, but he is keeping his options open for the future.
Currently, Samaroo is teaching in UTC's political science department.
He said he is a professor because he loves teaching young people.
He also said he likes to see the "glow on a student's face when the light bulb turns on."
Bradley Jones, a senior from Dickson, Tenn., said, "The amount of respect I have for him has increased dramatically because of his work with the reform movement he led. It puts a personal perspective on politics as a whole."
Blake Tutton, a sophomore from Harrison, Tenn., said, "I would say he has a lot of credibility since he's been a part of the whole political scene in Trinidad, and I think he is extremely intelligent, so I don't have any doubts about the information he teaches."
Samaroo said his future is "definitely in the service of people," whether it be a lecturer or Prime Minister of Trinidad.
"My goal is to effect thought," Samaroo said. "People should act in a positive matter in society.