A chara, – Brian Cowen put on a storming performance in the Dáil on Wednesday morning followed by a bravura interview with Seán O’Rourke, in which he came out fighting in defence of his record. He was engaged, passionate, combative and more fired up than any time since he became Taoiseach.
As a Fianna Fáil activist, I find it incredible that he couldn’t once have been bothered getting this animated at any point over the last three years when the country was crying out for inspiration and leadership. With his back against the wall, his political legacy in tatters, his party at 13 per cent and his own rating at 8 per cent, it has taken an imminent challenge to his leadership by Brian Lenihan to get him excited on the airwaves.
The Minister for Finance was entirely correct to point out that “serious mistakes were made [by Fianna Fáil] prior to 2008” when Mr Cowen was in charge. It is those disastrous decisions that have landed us in this predicament and that’s why my party faces obliteration in February. Neither ranting on the airwaves nor putting it up to Mr Lenihan by openly backing Micheál Martin for the leadership will take away from those facts.
If Brian Cowen leads the party into this election, his TDs will be annihilated. With a 92 per cent disapproval rating for their leader, if the parliamentary party still can’t muster 18 signatures then they deserve everything they get. – Is mise,
DAVID CARROLL,
Travers Hill,
Boyle, Co Roscommon.