Fianna Fáil mayors accepted invitations to controversial RIC event before later criticising it

Clockwise from left: Cllr Wayne Harding; Cllr Peter Ormond; Cllr Niall Kelleher Image: Twitter/Facebook Clockwise from left: Cllr Wayne Harding; Cllr Peter Ormond; Cllr Niall Kelleher Image: Twitter/Facebook TWO FIANNA FÁIL mayors who announced they would not attend the Government’s RIC commemoration last month privately accepted invitations to attend the event before doing so.

Members of Cabinet, former Taoisigh, members of the Council of State and Garda Commissioner Drew Harris were due to attend, before the commemoration was cancelled following a public backlash at the start of the year.The controversy surrounding the event began after Fianna Fáil’s Cathal Crowe publicly announced he would boycott it because he felt the RIC was an “organisation that was the strong-arm of the British state in Ireland”.

He told the department that he was “unfortunately” not able to attend, but closed the email by wishing the government “every success with the event”. “I get invited to these things all the time, but I just declined and told the Department I couldn’t go because I had to go to another event,” he explained.On 2 January, Meath County Council’s Cathaoirleach, Wayne Harding responded to the Department of Justice and Equality saying he would accept the invitation, and asked for a soft copy of the letter for details about the commemoration.

He pointed to remarks by historian and member of the government’s Expert Group for the Decade of Centenaries, Diarmuid Ferriter, who said at the time that the group did not recommend the planned commemoration event for the RIC.

Confusion may've been down to what was being commemorated exactly. Disbanded. Existence. Or establishment?

Of course they did,anything to get into a tent

Maybe a case of ambivalence, ambiguity, indecisiveness? Until party stepped in to save them from having their naïveté exploited by more cunning others.

FF the republican party drink the devils milk. Just dont get caught lads. FF the party that would sell their soul to the devil and want to enter government with FG and screw us for 4 years. Remember this is the party of water charges, and destroyed our Republic.

Three gents who have forgotten FF roots think they should review their roles with in the republicanparty.

The Republican Party..me arse!!

FF really has lost their identity, they should be placed alongside FG on opposition somewhere else other than the Dáil...🎪

Ashamed of there Republican past sickening they would honour British terrorist.

ally_suds They said they had another event to attend instead ,,NO that's a cop out JUST say you are not going to a commemoration about ppl who murdered Irish ppl you fucking jackeens

'Sure isn't that what you do...' The most honest 6'ish words ever spoken by an Irish Politician. ... who promptly 'left'....

Totally unsuprised truth be told ,the lure of the apron strings too strong only for the quick retreat due to backlash.

No problem with that

babsbear There's a fucking surprise

Look at them there with the big Fianna Fáil head up on them

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