In the heart of diligence: The story of Ibrahim Manna
After 4 years in politics, Ibrahim finally makes a big step in his career
“Can you hear me?” Ibrahim Manna says patiently, but a little nervously, looking at his phone screen in confusion. Behind his back, like a majestic obelisk, a statue of an eagle shines in the light of a dim lamp, but the technical issues that Ibrahim faced during the digital interview were so complex that the eagle’s brilliance could not overshadow them. Ibrahim is already used to constant technical difficulties because he has been giving interviews via Skype, Zoom and FaceTime non-stop as election day looms closer and closer.
Ibrahim is a patient person, and when the connection has been restored, his lips stretch into a ghostly, but joyful smile. This was the fifth time the Skype interview was interrupted, and the answer to the interviewer’s question was like a dead weight in the air, but Ibrahim still waited to answer further questions.
Patience is one of the best qualities that Ibrahim is proud of. The reason for this is the day back in 2003 when Hurricane Juan hit Nova Scotia mercilessly. That day Ibrahim was at work. He worked at McDonald’s for seven years before starting his own company “Reasonable Renovation”, but that day he was alone because all of the staff refused to go to work due to bad weather.
“I was very hardworking,” says Manna, “…that day I worked 48 hours straight without taking a break, it was fun.”
When Hurricane Juan reached Darmouth, Ibrahim, like a soldier on the battlefield, was the only one of the staff who went to work. All those 48 hours, he cooked food, took orders and served customers, regardless of the bad weather outside. He was incredibly patient with everything he had to deal with that day, so the interruption of the Skype interview was a grain of sand in a sea of troubles, where Ibrahim demonstrated his patience and diligence. Things that he is so proud of the most.
The connection is restored. Ibrahim looks a little distracted because he is thinking about that very day when Hurricane Juan hit Nova Scotia, but the voice on the other side of the screen brings him back to reality and the next question reaches his ears. When he hears a question, a smile touches his lips again, and with it, he giggles softly because this is another question about McDonald’s.
Ibrahim laughs, preparing an answer that will surprise the person on the other side of the screen.
He was one of the founders of the McDonald’s free coffee campaign when he was promoted to manager at the age of 16, making him the promotions inventor and the youngest manager in the country at the time.
Ibrahim has always been one of those who are 100% dedicated to their work. This dedication uncovers in the way he works, but there is something that reveals Ibrahim from the other side. From the side of a brave and compassionate person. The act he did two years ago made him a hero.
On July 13, 2019, Ibrahim rescued a woman from committing suicide on the MacKay bridge. He and his three friends were driving on the bridge but were forced to stop due to a tire problem, where they saw a woman who was about to jump off of the bridge.
“The only thing I was thinking, how I’m gonna save her,” explains Manna, “…so I said ‘You know what? For me, I’m not looking back, I need to do something”.
As Ibrahim tells this story, an oppressive silence reigns in the room and on the other side of the screen. The interviewer behind the screen is surprised, and although Ibrahim smiles, you can see a slight excitement through his glasses.
That night he and his friends held this woman for 20 minutes, not allowing her to take her own life. They held her until the rescue team arrived.
The tension rises sharply when Ibrahim exhales and says that not a similar, but the stressful incident happened to him in 2019.
Ibrahim helped a family of Syrian refugees whose children died in a fire in 2019. He sincerely wanted to help these people and decided to build boxes for the funeral, and then he put the bodies in these boxes.
According to Ibrahim’s brother, Yazan Manna, this is what Ibrahim does when he has some free time. Yazan says Ibrahim takes measurements himself and builds boxes for free.
“After he told me this, I’ve been having bad dreams over a week,” says Yazan, “…so I was shocked because it takes a lot of hard work.”
Also, Yazan mentioned his brother’s selflessness when they were little.
Manna's family is from Jordan. They moved to Canada in 1995, but because of the family circumstances, they had to go back for a year. Then the incident, where Yazan mentioned a braveness of his brother, happened to them when they were at school. They have been sent to the principal’s office, where they were accused of bad behaviour. According to Yazan, the teachers had a right to raise their hand on children for educational purposes, and when the principal tried to hit him, Ibrahim was exposed to the punch, protecting his younger brother.
Ibrahim is proud that he has a desire to help people. He is a successful businessman who opened his own business in 2005. But his career in politics is still new to him. For 4 years in politics, he clearly set a goal to become the councillor of District 6, where he wants to protect parks because he likes gardening and spends his free time on it. Also, he wants to provide affordable housing for low-income people in the district.
But one of the most important reasons is his children. Specifically, his newborn daughter, Mira Manna.
“She keeps me up, she’s the one who’s pushing me to this” with a gentle smile states, Ibrahim, “…I want to go into the politics to change her life and my kids’.”
In the future, Ibrahim plans to become Premier if he wins these elections. He is optimistic about the future of his career in politics.
