FF scapegoat takes hit on podium, others hide, and some avoid

There was a lively atmosphere on O’Connell Street in Limerick today with a red army again packing the street. Today rather than rugby, it was the issue of Shannon and its slots that were the main event. The press are pulling their punches at the moment but the only FF TD, John Creegan, on the stand was loudly booed off the stage by the crowd and later told to take the feelings of the crowd back to Dublin. Perhaps this was the reason that the political speakers were not introduced as being members of any party …

The rally was the typical mix of politicans, trade union reps, and local business figures. They all echoed the sentiments that we need to keep the Shannon slots to preserve the economy and balanced development going in the region. These speeches were as to be expected and weren’t anything unusual for such an event. It was the crowd’s reaction to John Creegan that was the real suprise of the event. The crowd didn’t take anything he had to say and immediately started to boo and heckle him off the stage (see here and here). RTE appear to be scared off from any such factual reporting as it must nearly be time for them to ask for a license increase and so instead said that the crowd was angry at times. The Claw was there as a local businessman and sporting hero, when he came to speak he didn’t mince his words and told Minister O’Dea where exactly to get off. Minister O’Dea had made it a very public point that he wouldn’t be attending the rally. It seems that whilst several more of the local FF organisation where around, they were very much like the new FF TD for Clare Timmy Dooley and preferred to skulk unnoticed in the crowd.

The main thrust of Fianna Fail’s argument was given by Cllr Kevin Sheehan of FF Limerick West. Sheehan speech focused on blaming everything on the people of Dublin, the civil servants and then rounded up with a call for people to vote against the European Treaty referendum. It wasn’t surprising that the crowd were more than a bit lost at his ramblings which were loudly muttered so that people couldn’t even understand the comments. I suppose that as a Fianna Fail councillor that he could really call people to vent during the local elections in 2009 as well that’d be his seat… Its not like the people in Ireland are in any way holding the Government or Fianna Fail as responsible for the current state of the country.

The people made their feelings felt in Limerick today so hopefully the heckles and the anger of the crowd may begin to touch those in positions of power in Dublin or even absent local ministers. It was an interesting event that showed there is a lot of life in the Shannon campaign and that it is really only revving up.

Here are a couple of crowd shots:

There is more on this issue over at The Limerick Blogger and by Dan Sullivan.