reference person for Social Policy in the legislative period 2006–2012, serving also as councillor for Social Welfare at the council's Public Center for social welfare. He was elected by direct vote in 2012 into the city council. His portfolio includes the economy, social policy, international development and equality policy. Following his election as councillor, he had to resign his membership of the Ostend City Municipal Advisory Board for Ethnic Minorities but continued his activism as opposition politician with ethnic minority affairs under his portfolio. In the Dutch-language book , Nweke was credited with bringing about a spirited opposition and debate in the Council for Social Affairs which did not exist before his time. Due to being a lone opposition voice, the book argued, the issues he raised seemed to be largely ignored. Preferential treatment for children of councillors In the Council Session of 7 December 2011, Collins Nweke initiated a campaign to end the practice of preferential treatment for children of councillors in the allocation of places for student jobs. Nweke continued to mount a strong opposition to the practice, arguing in Council that it was unjustified for his own two teenage sons to be employed by Council simply because their father happened to be a councillor. Economisch Huis Oostende controversy Early in 2014, Nweke expressed concern about the efficiency of the State Owned Enterprise (SOE), Economisch Huis Oostende (House of the Economy Ostend) in delivering its corporate goals despite considerable resources which the council had invested in it. He however declared that he was ready to give a fair chance to the new Alderman, Niko Geldhof, to inject some impetus into the firm. In the summer of 2014 Nweke commended the development on social media. However, before the monthly Council debate session of August 2014, Nweke raised questions about substantial losses the firm had recorded in the preceding years, and stated that his party would not approve further funding for the firm until a clear recovery plan was tendered to Council. Opposition party, New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) accused Collins of a flip-flop. Collins justified his approach in public statements. Ostend Citizen List OK controversy A breakaway local political party OK, led by the former chairman of New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) Hendrik Wallijn in an interview in a national daily De Standaard of 20 September 2018 disclosed that unable to gather sufficient signatures to have their party registered for participation