60 new citizens sworn in
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/06/2019 (2516 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A six-year journey came to a joyous end for Leo Landaverde and his family yesterday afternoon in Brandon.
Back in 2013, Landaverde came to Canada from El Salvador seeking a better life, with his wife Mirna, and their daughter Melissa. On Wednesday, right hands raised, the trio took the oath of citizenship and officially became Canadian citizens.
“We are very glad to be part of this great nation,” Landaverde said. “You have freedom (here) that in our country we don’t have. We can express our opinion and we can vote and free choice … in our country, we don’t have that.”
They were three of 60 people who became Canadian citizens outside the Riverbank Discovery Centre. The ceremony is one of three being held this year in the community, with one scheduled for today at Brandon University, and one held at the Dome Building last week to kick off the Manitoba Summer Fair.
The number of ceremonies in the community is not out of the ordinary, Judge Suzanne Carrière said before the event. They were in Brandon in February and back in October, and seem to be in the area every few months.
Coming to Canada was a good opportunity not only their daughter but for them, Landaverde said. In El Salvador, it’s challenging to secure employment past the age of 35.
“They always try to give jobs to the young people, so the old people are just going back and back,” he said.
As new Canadian citizens, they’re looking forward to different opportunities.
“(We’re) very excited, very happy.”
Nino Herrera was also part of the citizenship ceremony on Wednesday. He came to Canada for the future of his children, he said. They moved from the Philippines approximately five years ago, with education and health benefits the driving force behind their move.
“(The Philippines) it’s a little bit expensive compared to here and there’s not so much student loan,” Herrera said. “But here, you can have the student loan, and you have opportunity here.”
They’re lucky to have been given the privilege to become citizens, he said.
After four and a half years of living in the country, Abimbola Ogunlowore also received her Canadian citizenship Wednesday. She moved here from Nigeria back in September 2014 with her husband, who received his master’s degree in Canada. Having Canadian citizenship opens up a lot of doors, she said, and means more freedom.
“If you want to go to another country, you don’t have to apply for a visa,” Ogunlowore said. “If I wanted to go to the U.S. as a Nigerian citizen, we have to go apply for a visa — for any amount of time (you’re visiting) you have to apply for a visa there.”
Wednesday marked the end of a multi-year journey for her.
“I’m very excited,” she said. “Again, it’s been a long process, but (I’m) happy it’s right at the end.”
» mverge@brandonsun.com
» Twitter: @Melverge5
