Which party did you say you were with?
Kilian Doyle
Times are tough for lowly Fianna Fáil soldiers of destiny chasing council seats.
Many have come to the conclusion that distancing themselves from the Motherlode rather than cutting the apron strings outright will best help their chances of election.
You’ve probably heard already about Ronan Callely, scion of Ivor, who deemed the Facebook logo to be more worthy of a prominent spot on his election posters than Fianna Fáil’s.
At least the hip young dude that is Ronan mentions the party, however subtly.
Others don’t bother. Irishelection.com brings us the delightful sight of Fianna Fáil Councillor in Ballybofey, who leaves out his affiliations completely on his posters.
The lovely Maman Poulet has a few more examples of the burgeoning ranks of “Independent” Fianna Failers spreading across the land.
Which all begs the question: Whatever happened to the glory days of the “Bertie’s team” branding on every FF poster from Malin to Mizen?
Posters on this thread on politics.ie are ahaving great fun playing guess the party. Try it yourself. Big pat on the back to anyone who can work out what party Cllr Martin Mily Jnr represents on Kildare County Council by looking at his website.
Some other candidates are too afear’d to even show their faces in public. One reader from Glasnevin in Dublin wrote to us about one chap in her neck of the woods who is evidently so mortified of his affiliations he’s taken to hiding behind the Mammy’s skirts.
“On April 29th, the mother of Fianna Fáil Cllr Liam Kelly called to my door. She was alone, with only a big, black handbag for company. She asked me in a very quiet voice to ‘please vote for my son’,” writes our mole. “I was so shocked, I was speechless. How symbolic is this of the abandonment of all responsibility, and morality, by the Fianna Fáil party?”
Some might say Fianna Fáil abandoned responsibility and morality many moons ago. Some might not.
Cllr Kelly, you may remember, was the centre of controversy back in 2006 after a Sunday newspaper published mobile phone photographs of him allegedly snorting a white substance resembling cocaine at a house party in Dublin.
So maybe he wasn’t canvassing himself because the Mammy still has him grounded?
