Candidate selection system a ‘farce’, says FF cllr

THE system used by Fianna Fáil to select candidates to run for elections has developed into “a farce”, a party councillor in north Tipperary has claimed.

Cllr John Hogan said Fianna Fáil had become “a small exclusive club” and the selection system, whereby delegates from cumainn vote for candidates to run for election, can be easily manipulated to block new hopefuls running.

He claimed there are several cumainn in north Tipperary operating in breach of the constitution and rules of the party.

“This type of practice is replicated in many parts of the constituency in north Tipperary and several suspect cumainn have been set up over the last 40 years,” he said. “In the opinion of many of the wider Fianna Fáil family, these dodgy cumainn have a huge part to play in who gets selected to represent Fianna Fáil.”

Mr Hogan said, in his 11 years as a county councillor, he had never been invited to, or heard of, an AGM being called by some of the local cumainn. He said his concerns were conveyed to headquarters but no action was taken.

The councillor sparked controversy last week when he pulled out of the selection contest within minutes of delegates voting to choose an election candidate in North Tipperary.

“I believe standards in the party first dropped during the reign of Charlie Haughey and, since then, politicians in general have lost the trust of the public,” he said.

“As I see it, if the convention system is flawed, a TD is starting out his or her political career with a setup that ignores rules or standards. Then that TD already has it engrained into their system that the best way to get on is through dishonest methods.

“I feel choked and strangled by an unfair selection process that is destroying our party. We need to shout stop, change the way we operate in Fianna Fáil while we still have a party.”

Outgoing TD Máire Hoctor, nominated by delegates to contest the seat in the constituency, said Mr Hogan’s views were thought-provoking. “We will have to act on what he said,” she conceded.

Meanwhile, Michael Smith jnr, who was defeated in last week’s selection contest, claimed Ms Hoctor and Cllr Hogan had formed a pact to ensure he did not win a nomination.

But Mr Hogan refuted these allegations outright. “I can categorically state there was absolutely no pact of any description with Máire Hoctor. I was there to win the race and I withdrew my name at the last minute following very nasty things that happened during the campaign.”

Mr Hogan said he would still like to be added to the ticket for the election.