Party defectors should resign from council

THE recent defections of Cork county councillor Deirdre Forde from Fianna Fáil to Fine Gael and the resignation of Cork city councillor Chris O’Leary from the Green party have raised issues which have not been addressed.

The election of any representative is a result of a massive amount of work carried out by dedicated party members who spend endless hours canvassing, distributing election literature, erecting posters, writing letters and making phone calls. Their reward is in the success of the candidate.

If the member resigns from the party, then he/she is morally and ethically obliged to resign from the local authority seat.