Fine Gael mayor steps down over racist remarks

A FINE GAEL mayor and failed Dáil candidate who said he would no longer represent “black Africans” has stepped down.

In a statement, Darren Scully said he is tendering his resignation as mayor of Naas, Co Kildare.

Mr Scully said he wished to “apologise unreservedly” for remarks made on local and national radio, adding that he realises “they have caused deep hurt and offence in all communities and in all sections of society”.

However, he insisted that despite earlier saying he would stop representing “aggressive black Afri-cans” in office, he “abhors racism” and said his comments were “open to a misinterpretation”.

It is unclear whether Mr Scully’s apology will save his seat on Kildare County Council, which he has held since 2009, or his future in Fine Gael.

Mr Scully’s departure came after an African-born mother-of-two living in Naas became the second person to make a complaint to gardaí over his remarks. The woman, who did not wish to be named, made the complaint under the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, the woman said that the remarks incited hatred and could not go unchallenged. “If the mayor of a town is giving out this message, where will this stop? Will we now see a system of apartheid in Naas, with one rule for black people and another for white?”