CLLR Ahmet (Andy) Dourmoush, who represents Longlands Ward, became the London Borough of Bexley’s 59th Mayor at the Council’s Annual Meeting on Wednesday 24 May.
The new Mayoress is his wife, Mrs Elmaz Dourmoush. Cllr Dourmoush is the 71st person to hold the title of Mayor of Bexley since the old Borough of Bexley received its charter in 1937.
For Over 20 years Cllr Dourmoush has undertaken various duties in community groups such as London Turkish Community Football Federation, Turkish schools, and aid organizations across the capital, where he actively worked to help his community.
“ I was taught at a very young age to value everything, which is most important when you have little and my work with the scrutiny function of the Council has allowed me to support others to get the best possible value for every £ that we spend in the Borough. As a businessman, I have to reach out to all communities. They are my customers and my residents and now, as Mayor, I want to represent every single one of the quarter of a million people that make Bexley their home and place of work.”
The Mayor-Elect added: “I think that I always held an ambition to become Mayor of Bexley, a major London Borough and I intend to work as hard as I can to meet and support everyone that calls Bexley their home. I could not feel any prouder than I do today and I have set myself the highest standards to be the best representative of our Borough that I can be.”
The Mayor appointed Councillor Nigel Betts, who represents Falconwood & Welling Ward, as his Deputy Mayor and Mrs Ann Morrison, as the Deputy Mayoress. The Mayor has appointed Hussain Hodja from the Shackwell Lane Mosque as his Chaplain. This is one of the Mosques that Councillor Dourmoush attends.
The Mayor has announced that he and the Mayoress will be working throughout his Mayoral year to raise funds for small local charities.