Sir, - Fitzwilton called their £30,000 donation to Ray Burke and Fianna Fail a support for the democratic process. The opposing side in the television debate, the deflector system supporters, probably felt that their election of Tom Gildea as a TD in Donegal was a finer example of that same process. However, despite the huge support they won for their argument, when Bertie Ahern's Fianna Fail/PD minority Government lost a further seat in Dublin North (ironically Ray Burke's seat), Mr Ahern immediately announced that he would not be talking to Mr Gildea. Fianna Fail seemed only prepared to look for "support for the democratic process" from one direction.
Mr Burke memorably called for a level playing field, when he was savaging RTE some years ago. There is not much use having a level playing field if the referee's expenses are being paid solely by one side. Until all donations to political parties are made illegal, electors may as well get used to their lower position in the pecking order of "the political process". - Yours, etc., Enda Lynch,
Portobello, Dublin 8.