Sir, - It has recently come to our attention that Mr Ronan Keating is considering running for the position of first citizen. We are unsure whether the 21-year-old Mr Keating is aware that the earliest presidential election for which he will be eligible will be in 2018, presuming that all intervening holders of the office complete their full terms. According to the authoritative Irish text of the Constitution, a presidential candidate must have completed 35 years of age. For the 2011 election Mr Keating will be only 34.
By the time the 2018 election comes around, Mr Keating will be 41 and may well have a son or daughter eligible to vote, and to keep him in touch with the youth of the day. - Yours, etc., Frank Mitchell, John O'Halloran,
Swanward Court, Parnell Road, Dublin 12.