REACTION:FIANNA FÁIL are set to regroup, rebuild and refocus their efforts with particular attention being given to urban areas, according to Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
“Fianna Fáil will recover, we will rebuild. Similar suggestions were made to the Fine Gael party in 2002 when they had a very adverse result,” he predicted.
Mr Cowen accepted the party had a very serious setback. “But we have many good people in our party who will be part of the Dáil and who are strongly committed to the party tomorrow as they have been in the past.”
Speaking at the Laois-Offaly count centre in Tullamore at the weekend, Mr Cowen said the party would “revamp our organisation . . . particularly in the urban areas which is clearly needed”.
When asked about the change in party leadership, he said he felt he needed to step back and let another person lead Fianna Fáil into the election. This was because, having won a confidence vote in the parliamentary party, he was then not able to proceed with a ministerial reshuffle, which he felt was necessary as they went to fight the election.
Mr Cowen said Micheál Martin has done a wonderful job during what had been a difficult campaign. He had shown himself as someone of political substance who was anxious to debate the issues, to get into the detail and to avoid the soundbite.
Fine Gael’s Charlie Flanagan, who was elected in Laois-Offaly, said a “disastrous government” had coincided with the downfall of the Taoiseach. “From the time he took over the Government, he appeared to be paralysed by indecision and immobilised. Some of the decisions taken by Brian Lenihan were disastrous for the country. I would have felt that Brian as Taoiseach might have communicated better to the people of the country,” he said. “I would hope that Enda Kenny will use his skill as a communicator to explain to people precisely what’s happening and, in some detail, to chart the course to lead us out of what has been a really serious depression.”
Mr Flanagan claimed the new government would have to hit the ground running. “The government will not have any honeymoon – probably the first government in the history of the State not to enjoy any honeymoon – because Enda Kenny has already set out what he hopes to implement over the next 100 days and the first of those 100 days is Monday.”