Lankan elected LSE student leader

The prestigious London School of Economics (LSE), which ranks No. 3 in UK University rankings, has elected a Sri Lankan student as the General Secretary of its Student Union, the top most position a student could hold at the Union.

Fadhil Bakeer Markar, the son of former Parliamentarian Imthiaz Bakeer Markar is the first ever Sri Lankan to be elected to this powerful position at the LSE, and probably the first ever South Asian elected as well. "Getting elected was the biggest achievement in my life" Fadhil said.

In a two-day ballot across the University which was held on February 28 and March 1, Fadhil polled 808 votes whilst his opponent, a Briton, polled 545. Fadhil further added that, "This is probably one of the highest margins that a General Secretary candidate has polled in recent times."

Fadhil will now be taking a year out from his studies (commencing July 2007) and will be employed by LSE Student Union to work fulltime and carry out its day-to-day functions. As the General Secretary, Fadhil will lead a team of three other fulltime elected student officers and ten part time students also elected during the recent ballot.

He is a past student of Ananda College, Colombo and Asian International School Colombo.