Madam, - Has Fianna Fáil lost its soul? In the past week there have been many questions as to why Fianna Fail lost so many seats in the local and European elections. It seemed clear to me that because of Government policies the party was going to be punished by an angry electorate.
Fianna Fáil was founded as a party to represent the small man. It no longer represents him at all. One of its fundamental platforms was the establishment by Sean Lemass and Ken Whitaker in the 1960s of the engines of the Irish economy - the semi-State bodies. These companies provided jobs for thousands of people and also provided services in many areas of life. Steadily the present Government, largely under the influence of the Progressive Democrats, has set out to destroy the semi-State bodies.
Take RTÉ: over the past 12 years it has been forced to reduce its core staff by over 1,000 people, thus reducing its capacity to make home-produced programmes. Where once they were a vibrant light entertainment department, now there is now only a skeleton. There once was a features department which produced in-house documentaries and feature programmes; it has been abolished. The drama department concentrates on making Fair City.
Congratulations to RTÉ that it is now in surplus; but at what cost? It has succeeded in competing in the marketplace but has lost hundreds of talented staff to the private sector.
Take Aer Rianta, a very successful airport authority which is making a profit and whose duties require it to oversee Dublin, Cork and Shannon. What madness has struck the Government that it sees a need to break it up into three different authorities and threaten the jobs of its permanent staff? We are a small country. Why do we need three airport authorities?
We had Telecom, a very good public company which controlled the phone services of the State. Now, after its privatisation, what we are given is a company which demands and gets a more costly monthly rental from landline subscribers then any other telecom company in Europe.
Aer Lingus has survived the privatisation trend so far, but for how long? As well as this creeping privatisation, the present Government has demonstrated in a string of policy decisions that it is not listening to the people.
Take the smoking ban. I am a non-smoker and greatly appreciate being able to go into smokeless pubs, hotels and restaurants, but we are reliant on tourism and a considerable proportion of our own people smoke. Why did the Minister for Health not introduce smoking rooms in pubs, clubs and hotels?
The Government's proposal to de-centralise 10,000 civil servants to remote parts of the country is ludicrous. Again, we are a small country and our main services should be centred in Dublin. This proposal was floated by Charlie McCreevy in last year's Budget speech as an obvious old-fashioned Fianna Fáil "stroke" to help the lads in the local elections. You got your answer, lads. People recognised the hypocrisy and cynicism of the proposal and they rejected it.
If Fianna Fáil is to win the next election it needs to regain it soul and go back to representing the small people. Let the Government tackle the problems in the health service, let it do something to make it easier for young people to be able to buy their first house. - Yours, etc.,
ULTAN MACKEN, Menlo, Galway.
Madam, - Both media and political commentators have advanced many reasons for the poor showing of Fianna Fáil in the recent elections.
The politicians have done likewise but most seem to have forgotten that the ongoing legacy of the various Tribunals probably was one of the key factors in turning voters away from Fianna Fáil. - Yours, etc.,
JOHN CODY, Menloe Gardens, Blackrock, Cork.
Madam, - There is a simple solution to the pollution of election posters: ban them.
In 1999 John Gallagher was elected to Dublin City council for the south-west inner city ward. No posters were used in his election at that time, or in the latest election. This pledge was printed on his election literature.
He was re-elected: John will plant sapling trees to compensate for the paper used during his campaign. - Yours, etc.,
PADDY MORTON, PC, (John Gallagher's director of elections), Dublin 8.