LIAM O GEIBHEANNAIGH,
A chara, - As the "Baldy Bus" follows the Celtic Snail into the political twilight, it is fair to say that its conductor, though vanquished in the electoral battle, did the Republic some worthwhile service.
His "quality of life" agenda helped highlight a serious deficiency in the performance of the Government, which failed to address the needs of disadvantaged Irish people or support the family as the core of our society.
Unfortunately for the Fine Gael leader, his drubbing of the Taoiseach in the great TV debate came too late to influence the election result. Yet his performance made viewers painfully aware of Mr Ahern's limitations for the post of national leader and inability to articulate a sense of nationhood, outside a paradigm of percentages, ratios and statistics.
Mr Noonan also heralded an overdue correction of his party's flawed Northern Ireland policy which, hopefully, will be retained by his successor. Unfortunately, Mr Bruton still does not recognise that the Achilles heel of his own administration was his Northern policy.
Mr Noonan's willingness to adopt a "leadership role" was also welcome in a world of waffle and spin where the ability to speak simultaneously out of both sides of the mouth has been raised to an art form. Of course, to lead is to run the risk of error and he certainly erred in his handling of the Hepatitis C catastrophe, for which he has paid a price.
However, as in his response to electoral defeat, he held up his hand and accepted his responsibility, a response which might provide a useful precedent for others in the future. - Is mise,
LIAM Ó GÉIBHEANNAIGH,
Áth an Ghainimh,
Co Átha Cliath.