Madam, - Monday's show of muscle by gardaí in Sligo really convinces me they are a law unto themselves and leaves me afraid.
Minister for Justice Michael McDowell has quite rightly announced the setting up of a Garda Reserve Force in the face of opposition from the Garda staff associations. What is wrong with reserve forces, which operate well in other countries?
I well remember when gardaí did all the work now done by traffic wardens, dog wardens, litter and community wardens etc. Can anyone say their replacement was a mistake? Does it take a fully fledged Garda to answer a telephone call or hand out a tax form to a member of the public? After all, it is not rocket science to direct traffic, make citizens' arrests, patrol estates (which rarely see a garda now) for disorderly behaviour and minor breaches of the law.
I feel a reserve force is an ideal way for concerned people to give their time to the community and the Garda and keep out the threat of sinister vigilantes.
It is also a way of keeping the Garda in touch with the communities they serve. The Minister has said he wants a community police force, not a commuting one, and I agree with him.
There is also the little matter of the "Blue Flu", when able-bodied gardaí shamefully held the country to ransom by going "sick" and drawing their pay. A reserve force could be a guarantee against this happening again.
Are the staff associations' objections really about loss of overtime and benefits, defending their patch? Let's hear. - Yours, etc,
BRIAN McCAFFREY, Clifton Crescent, Galway.