Chuka Umunna a mixed of Nigerian, Irish and English descent has been selected to vie for a Labour Party’s parliamentary seat at the next general elections. A 30-year old lawyer, Chuka has been an object of comparison with America’s Barack Obama within the UK’s media and political circles. The New Statesman; Britain's award-winning current affairs magazine, in 2005, profiled Barack Obama in its list of ‘10 People Who Could Change the World'. The same publication recently featured Chuka Umunna alongside other 9 people from different countries in its 2009 edition of the list.

CheckOut had the privilege of interviewing this intelligent and articulate young politician. It was an exciting experience that exposed his passion for societal progress. In captivating humility, he commented on the growing comparison of his person with that of Barack Obama, saying that the emergence of an Obama figure at the top echelon of British politics is not an impossibility. The following are excerpts of our interview with this gifted politician: 

Thank you for taking time out to grant this interview considering your busy schedule. Can you briefly tell us about yourself?    

Well, in terms of my family background, my father moved to UK from Nigeria in the 1960s. He came in here like many of our people to seek fortune by taking advantage of available opportunities. He took-up a job as a mechanic; amongst so many other things he engaged himself with for better livelihood. He worked during the day and studied in the evenings. With time, he went into the business of importing goods from West Africa. He was also into export. He had markets in such West African states as Gabon, Cameroon and to a large extent Nigeria. He successfully built-up his business and became popular. As a selfless Nigerian, he wanted to make a unique difference by contributing meaningfully to society. He made an attempt at the governorship seat of Anambra State but had his ambition cut short because of his staunch belief in transparency and accountability. Despite this, he still was able to make a respected impact on his community of origin in Anambra. Unfortunately, I was a teenager of about 13 years old when he died in a car crash in far away Anambra. One thing he left for me was political savvy. His political influences on me are massive! His interest in politics was not restricted to Nigeria. He took keen interest in British politics and those of other countries. My mother is from an Irish- English family whose father was quite a popular High Court Judge. That’s my background in a nutshell.

We congratulate you for being selected by the Labour Party to stand as its parliamentary candidate representing Streatham constituency at the next general elections. Relative to your age, this is indeed a big assignment with enormous responsibilities. How prepared are you for the demands of an assignment of this size?

I think the thing is that I am very lucky to be considered for this responsibility and to an extent I think I’ve done pretty well so far. Really, on a very basic level, putting myself forward to be selected as a candidate here would very much be like contributing to the community, considering where I am from. I haven’t prostituted myself around the country looking for a parliamentary seat for the sake of becoming an MP (Member of Parliament). This is about putting something back into the community and I think that’s what drives me and has kind of prepared me for what I want to do in a way. To your question: “how prepared are you”? I think you need a variety of experiences to put yourself forward for a political office. My legal experience has no doubt been very helpful at preparing me for this because as a lawyer, you are an advocate for your client and if you are lucky enough to get elected as a Member of Parliament, you become an advocate for the constituents of the constituency that you represent. My involvement in charitable work and in pressure groups and all other stuffs have added to my range of experiences. They have helped to prepare me for the role.

You are being viewed as one of the leading generational faces in British politics. Is this a wake-up call towards the building of a political process that will birth a British Obama?

Well, I have always said that I think a British Obama is possible. People could expect a British Obama. I mean, I tell you one thing, if you said to me: ‘Do you think a Black President is more likely than a Black Prime Minister?’ I would say no. I always actually thought that a Black Prime Minister was more likely than Black President. Why? Because the President of the United States is not only the Head of the Government, he is also the Head of State. But here the Prime Minister is simply the Head of the Government. We have a symbolic respect in the Queen, given that you are only looking at the Head of Government role here. I thought that it will be easier in a way, even more likely to have it here. Now that the world has a black American President, I think it makes it even more likely in our lifetime to experience same in Britain.