Letterkenny Town Council recently decided to proceed to appoint a trial Municipal Policy Committee (MPC). The purpose of these committees is to assist and advice the Council members on particular matters relevant to a set agenda.

The following notice appears on page 30 of today’s Donegal People’s Press (August 2nd, 2005)

Letterkenny Town Council
Local Government Act, 2001, Section 49

Notice of proposal to establish Municipal Policy Committee

Take notice that Letterkenny Town Council has recently agreed to establish a Municipal Policy Committee in the area of “Community”.

The Council are now inviting submissions / nominations from persons who would be interested in being considered for this committee. It is envisaged that 3 no. positions would be available.

All submissions / nominations should be made to the Town Clerk, Letterkenny Town Council, Letterkenny Public Services Centre, Neil T. Blaney Road, Letterkenny, before close of business on Wednesday 31st August, 2005.

P. Doherty – Town Clerk

Today, for the first time in my life, there is (officially) no active Irish Republican Army. All political rhetoric aside, this really is a momentous day.

I passionately believe in a United Ireland, but I am completely repulsed by the actions of the IRA (among other groups, of course) throughout the conflict, and the constant condonement and justification of these actions by their colleagues in Sinn Fein (yes, I do consider Sinn Fein and the IRA to be inextricably linked, more on that below). To get to a stage where the IRA is willing to lay down their arms, and put violent conflict behind them, is fantastic.

This is a unique announcement, and has gone further than anything said before. But, like most things in life, we need to be careful how much faith we put in this.

I’d like to preface the following comments with this important note: when I talk about Sinn Fein, I’m referring to the general party and not any individuals (unless named), most particularly not any local members. I have many friends who are Sinn Fein members, and work very closely with Sinn Fein representatives as a member of Letterkenny Town Council. I do not mean this as a personal attack on anyone, however I do not support much of the Sinn Fein (and IRA) ideology, much as Sinn Fein members may not support Fianna Fail policy.

Firstly, the main issue outstanding, if we take everything at face value, is the continued disengagement of the provisional movement from the Police Boards in Northern Ireland. This announcement opens the way for Sinn Fein representatives to start taking their places on the Police Boards across Northern Ireland, but I am not sure whether that will happen in the foreseeable future. The IRA sees itself as the defender of the community, and has historically not been willing to hand that power over to any other organisation.

Another issue is criminality. Many people have expressed concern that there was no mention of an end to criminality in the statement. This was never going to happen. While the statement does clearly mention an end to “all activity”, the main thing to remember is that Sinn Fein official policy is that any act sanctioned by the IRA Army Council cannot be a criminal act, as the Army Council is the only legitimate authority (and Government) on the island of Ireland. This is exactly what was said by Mitchell McLaughlin, Sinn Fein Chairman on RTE’s Questions and Answers back in January 2005 (when he also said that the brutal abduction, murder and disposal of the body of Jean McConville in 1972 was not a crime) and referenced by Gerry Adams in his speech to the 2005 Sinn Fein Ard Fheis. I do not know who organised and undertook the Northern Bank robbery in Belfast, but the IRA has admitted responsibility for the brutal murder of Garda Jerry McCabe while attempting to rob a delivery of money to a Post Office. These activities are completely, undeniably criminal and totally inexcusable. If Sinn Fein seek an “Ireland of Equals”, that should first mean that all citizens must fall under the same rule of law.

Criminality will be the “make or break” issue over the next year or two for the Peace Process. Sinn Fein and the IRA have a terrible record on this issue. One side carries out the attacks, robberies, racketeering and so on, while the other either denies or justifies them.

As I mentioned above, I do consider Sinn Fein and the IRA to be two sides of the same coin. Are all Sinn Fein politicians (or supporters) members or former members of the IRA? Definitely not. Where Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness members of the IRA Army Council until recent weeks? I have no idea. But, like the most Irish people, I believe the organisations are linked.

I do believe Gerry Adams was a member of the IRA. It is completely illogical to think he went from being imprisoned with IRA prisoners in the Long Kesh prison, to president of Sinn Fein, without having been involved with the IRA. The (UK) Times this week published a photo of a young Gerry Adams in IRA attire, as part of an IRA Guard of Honour at the (IRA) military-style funeral of an IRA member. His status as “Brownie”, the An Phoblacht columnist who first promoted the “ballot box in one hand, armalite in the other” strategy is well documented.

Martin McGuinness has openly admitted holding senior roles in the IRA, as have Martin Ferris (TD) and many more. The official Sinn Fein website, which has recently removed some of the more contentious items such as the “Sniper at Work” t-shirts, still sells items with slogans such as “IRA- Undefeated Army” and “You Can Never Kill the Revolution”, featuring a man in military uniform holding a large automatic rifle.

The IRA statement talks about the move to democracy and political means of continuing the struggle. If Sinn Fein and the IRA were not linked, this would require the creation of a new political party to carry on where the armed struggle has left of. This, of course, will not happen.

What does all this mean? Sinn Fein, as a political organisation, continually undermines its own credibility by (for example) denying Gerry Adams’ membership of the IRA and by justifying the acts of the IRA. The IRA has consistently lied in previous statements (they denied, and then were shown to be behind a number of heinous acts throughout the years, including the murders of Garda Jerry McCabe, 14 year old Kathleen Feeney and Jean McConville) and by its very nature as a terrorist organisation is difficult to trust.

I am hopeful that the IRA statement marks a new beginning for Ireland, North and South. We will have to wait to see whether that happens or not. God willing, this chance will not fade away.

It’s just been announced that the Town Council has been allocated almost 9 Million Euro to acquire a “Turnkey” developmen of 58 houses, to add to the Council’s Social Housing stock.

While Social Housing is not without difficulties, this announcement must be welcomed. Currently, Letterkenny Town Council has about 1,400 people on our housing list and any new property to help alleviate this need is vital.

The Council is due to sign the contracts with the developer in the next weeks, and the houses should be finished early next year.

Update: The Skate Park is now in place and being used. You can view some great photos of skaters in action here and here.

Sometimes things move faster than other in life on the council!

Following my motion at the June council meeting, it has been confirmed that Donegal County Council has secured €60,000 in funding for the development of a Skate Park at the new Town Park, to be developed in the Ballymacool area of town. Aideen Doherty, of Donegal County Council, has been working on this project for some time, and should be credited for all her work.

This is a further bonus for sporting and recreation facilities in Letterkenny, with the new multi-million euro sports centre (also in the Ballymacool area) well under construction, and developments at St Eunan’s GAA to mention a few. There are still many areas which remain underserved, but Letterkenny Town Council remain committed to developing as many youth, community and recreational facilites as possible around the town.

This week, Letterkenny Town Council honoured Letterkenny Rovers with a Civic Reception to recognise their achivements throughout the years. They do excellent work with young people in the town, and have done for years, as do the GAA teams and Rugby Club. But not every young person has an interest in competitive sport. This funding for the skateboard park will allow young people who fall outside the traditional sports to be engaged in their chosen activity in a safe and organised way.

This will help more young people to become physically active in an outdoor sport. Skateboarding has become increasingly popular in Letterkenny over the years, but with no proper facilities skateboarders have been forced to take part in their chosen sport in places which are not designed for that purpose, and are putting their safety in danger. When this facility is complete, that will no longer be a problem.

In my Mayoral acceptance speech, I mentioned the development of these facilities as one of the priorities of my term as mayor. I’m delighted that, already, we can report this major development.

Last night (July 20th) I hosted my first civic reception. Letterkenny Town Council extended it’s highest honour to Letterkenny Rovers, in recognition of both their recent success in the Ulster Senior League and the years of hard work and commitment they have put in to helping the youth of Letterkenny.

As I mentioned in my speech (full text here), I’m not the most gifted footballer, but even I have seen first-hand the excellent work that Rovers do with the youth of the town.

The reception was very well attended, by players and supporters, by councillors and former councillors and many other people. The evening went very well, and was a credit to the club and all they’ve achieved.

Last night, the centre-piece of the Earagail Arts Festival launched at An Grianan Theatre in Letterkenny.

Amajuba- Like Doves We Rise sees four actors telling stories from their different stages of their lives in South Africa. And it is, by some distance, the most powerful dramatic piece I have ever seen. The performance runs until Saturday (July 16th), and I would highly recommend it to everyone. It’s well worth seeing.

I have no problem in emphatically endorsing this play, and recommending it to anyone who will listen. While not overly-suited to a family audience, this powerful play graphically illustrates the difficulties of life in South Africa in recent decades.

Last night was also my first chance to address an audience, as Mayor, during the Errigal Arts Festival. The festival contributes greatly to the cultural life of Letterkenny and Donegal, and takes up a huge amount of work year round. The success of the festival is a credit to the excellent work of the organising team.

The performance was attended by Her Excellency, Melanie Verwoerd, South African Ambassador to Ireland. I had the honour of welcoming her on behalf of Letterkenny Town Council, with Cllr Dessie Larkin and Michael McLoone (Donegal County Manager) welcoming her on behalf on the County Council.

The Errigal Arts Festival continues until Sunday, July 17th.

Last night (July 11th) I chaired my first monthly meeting of Letterkenny Town Council as Mayor of Letterkenny.

Most issues on the meeting ran smoothly, but there was one major issue which dominated the meeting.

Donegal County Council had proposed a re-alignment of a proposed road in the Killylastin / Windy Hall area of Letterkenny. As the road is featured on the Letterkenny and Environs Development Plan, the plan required the consent of Letterkenny Town Council before it could become official policy, and a part of the Development Plan.

The consultation of this proposal, and the treatment of the residents in the area affected, was without doubt the most poorly-handled issue I’ve seen in my time as a Public Representative. The families that will be most affected by any proposed change in the road were treated extremely poorly by the County Council.

This proposal was rejected last night at the meeting. Some councillors highlighted the treatment of the residents as their reason for the rejection.

This is a major issue, and was raised by every single councillor. Another issue which led to the rejection of the plan was the rezoning of land in the area from “Strategic Residential Reserve” to “Residential”. This would have meant opening further lands for development in one of the most densely-populated areas of Letterkenny. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, I was (and am) unwilling to support any proposal which would see more development in the Glencar Scotch area of Letterkenny without a proper Master Plan to outline how the development would fill the infrastructural deficit that exists in an area which has seen such huge growth in recent years, without any associated development in open spaces, green areas, community or sporting facilities.

Letterkenny Town Council has been criticised for the development of that area of the town. By reserving these lands as “Strategic Residential Reserve” we have shown a willingness to address these issues.