Walsh address pays tribute to Lenihan

MICHAEL COLLINS would have empathised with the bravery and courage of the late Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan who delivered the oration at the Béal na mBláth commemoration just months before his death, the founding president of the University of Limerick, Dr Edward Walsh, told attendees at this year’s ceremony in West Cork yesterday.

The late Fianna Fáil minister who died in June at the age of 52 made history last August when he became the first figure in the party to deliver the keynote oration at the annual Collins commemoration at Béal na mBláth.

Dr Walsh, who was instrumental in transforming the University of Limerick from a regional college into one of the country’s top universities, said his predecessor as orator was “a man of courage, ability, energy and integrity”.