Cox warns national good must be asserted over greed

THE former president of the European Parliament has told government leaders they must assert the national good over sectional interests and personal greed.

Pat Cox made the comments last night when guest speaker at the centenary celebrations of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.

Speaking in Cork, Mr Cox said the country needs public boards which are subject to democratic scrutiny prior to appointments, and to full democratic accountability thereafter.

“We need public watchdogs who not only watch but who, when warranted, also bark and bite,” the former Eurocrat said.

“We need less venality and better judgment in the higher reaches of our society.

“We need to afflict comfortable and cosy cartels and to comfort the afflicted more than has been our habit in recent years. Leadership based on good authority needs to be founded on sound judgment,” he said.

Mr Cox said a new style of leadership was needed because trust and confidence in all forms of authority increasingly need to be earned, rather than to be taken for granted.

“These vital assets stand lower in Ireland today than they have for some time. At this time of global and national economic crisis there is an uneasy air stalking the land as the new year begins.

“Our malaise is, I believe, deeper than issues of economy and finance alone,” said Mr Cox.

“Our society, no less than our economy, calls for attention. How we conduct business and its governance needs to be overhauled. Our political and public institutions need to be renewed to make them fit for purpose and to give us hope for the times we live in. Change will carry a price but it should not be at the expense of the most vulnerable,” added Mr Cox.