Madam, – You are to be congratulated for publishing a page showing the goodbye money and the pensions of politicians leaving the last Dáil (“Sum for outgoing TDs tops €13m”, by Pamela Duncan and Joanne Hunt, Home News, March 5th). It is a fine example of political pornography and serves as an illustration of how these dreadful administrators feathered their own nest and put their snouts deep into a trough that belongs to every taxpayer.
Unfortunately, I suspect that if you choose to print a similar page after the next election, taking a similar and representative number of TDs, the figures would not differ greatly. – Yours etc,
Madam, – In the past, when our political lords and masters were justifying substantial improvements in their salaries and conditions, they told us “if we paid peanuts, we would get monkeys”. Judging by the list of termination payments and pensions published by you (Home News March 5th), it would appear that we were paying caviar and truffles, but we still got monkeys. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Over the next few months our new political leaders will, once again, tell us that we are in a grave financial situation and that we will all have to endure continuing hardship until the country begins to recover.
It is extremely difficult to take these people seriously when we look at the massive payments which are being awarded to most of their colleagues, who have just lost their jobs. There is a tsunami of cash headed in the direction of a lot of ex-TDs. Some of the people who will be swept away in this tidal wave of money, were part of the country’s well-paid management team who were responsible for the disastrous decisions which have bankrupted the country.
Of course, we will be told that there is nothing that can be done about these payments. All of the recipients are “entitled” to be compensated, because they have lost their jobs and that is the way the system works.
It would seem that the term “entitlement” has a very subjective meaning in the corridors of Leinster House. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Often when asked, politicians say that they went into politics “to serve the people” or to do things better – certainly not for personal enrichment”. How hollow that sounds when you see the lump sums exiting TDs will pocket when they leave the Dáil. In many cases they are being rewarded for sheer incompetence – and the same politicians wonder why we distrust the political class. To underline the contempt with which they hold the electorate, the outgoing Taoiseach appoints a failed Dáil candidate to the Seanad gravy train.
Incoming TDs would do well to read Eddie Molloy’s article (Opinion, March 5th) and particularly Point 5: the need, as a core objective, for an ethical, competent accountable government and public service – that would go a long way to restoring confidence in the political system. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – I was relaxing on Saturday afternoon, reading your fine paper, when my blood pressure increased rapidly. The effrontery of our political class to feather their nests so much at our expense after destroying our country by either their actions or their inactions – depending on which one you look at. There is so much devastation caused to the finances of the people they purported to serve, it is immoral that these people should receive such vast sums of money.
We,who pay their incomes, lump sums and pension with our taxes, have no guarantees of future income and less now that they have destroyed our economy by the way they managed it on our behalf. Please can the politicians now appreciate our anger and take their responsibilities seriously and honestly from today onwards? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – I wish to express my dismay and anger at the arrogance shown by the outgoing TDs, from all sides of the house, who knew prior to the dissolution of the Dáil the lump sums and pensions they were going to receive, highlighted by The Irish Times (Home News, March 5th). Not to propose any adjustment to these vast sums in these dire times shows the amount of greed that exists on every side of the house.
If there is any justice left in this country, this is surely an injustice; if there is any humanity remaining then this must be the greatest display of inhumanity to fellow Irish men and women, who, on being made redundant, receive just the statutory redundancy amount (that is €600 for each year in employment); if there are morals then this is certainly amoral.
It is such arrogance and greed that has put this wonderful country in the mess that we now find ourselves. – Yours, etc.
Madam, – Is it blind irony or is it outstanding hypocrisy? Over the past few weeks we have been scoffing at the corruption in fallen African regimes whose leaders raided their national mints for gold bars and cash as they left office.
Now, I read that our own fallen regime, as they are ousted from office, are busily raiding our own country’s mint for €13 million (“Sum for outgoing TDs tops €13 million”, March 5th). How many gold bars can you get for that? Plenty! – Yours, etc,