Pedro Stephen (centre) is presented with Key to the City by Torres Shire Council for his tireless representation of the region. Photo: Supplied.
One of Queensland’s longest-serving mayors is the first person to be given the Key to the City on the Torres Strait islands after decades of service and leadership in the communities.
Outgoing Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA) Chairperson Pedro Stephen received the high honour earlier this month and said he had been humbled to receive the accolade.
“It’s a symbol that really makes me accountable; my religious understanding is that you have the authority to open doors no man can open, and you can close doors no man can close, so it feels very humbling to be given that respect,” he said.
“I think it gives you that responsibility of a lifetime as the gatekeeper, that you stand always knowing that your community are totally reliant on you to be the watchman on the tower, to sound the alarm for anything that is a threat to your community.”
Mr Stephen said his involvement with the Torres Shire Council began in 1991 as a councillor, before being elected to mayor in 1994 and serving in the position for over four decades until 2016.
When asked what drove his dedication, he said it was the need to ensure the voices of his people were heard by government.
“I always believed in grassroots democracy, in terms of getting communities’ aspirations and views to be addressed in the council,” he said.
“Council follows the line of the State Government, but we tend to create one-size-fits-all concepts that have no relevance to your community or your island lifestyle and cultural identity.”
The respected leader will be retiring as the chair of TSRA in February but said he would never stop being someone the community could turn to.
“I think the other responsibility that comes with the key is the acknowledgement from my colleagues across the 40 years I have served as an elder statesman,” Mr Stephen said.
“As an elder statesman, I will always be there as an advisor to the local government to actually look at how we can do things better in providing economic initiatives for our region to fulfill the gaps identified in the Close the Gap strategy or Commonwealth, mainly around employment.
“I will continue to lobby and advocate for the rights of my people to access services that are taken for granted elsewhere.”
