Political leadership - Cowen and FF have very few options

AS Brian Cowen’s time as a political leader stumbles towards its ignominious end it is sobering to recall the optimism that greeted his elevation to the Taoiseach’s office less than 30 months ago.

Many people were happy just because he was not Bertie Ahern, there seemed to be so much more to Mr Cowen and in different circumstances he might have had an opportunity to prove that. This feeling persisted even as economic storm clouds gathered.

Very few if any of his contemporaries — or predecessors — might have been better able to cope with the economic circumstances he inherited but a real sense of disappointment remains that the optimism of May 2008 was so very misplaced. That disappointment is exacerbated by the fact that Mr Cowen, along with Mr Ahern and Mr McCreevy, gave political oxygen to the business practices that beggared this country. It is deepened too by some of the decisions he took and that he sometimes, too often, behaved without the grace or openness that comes naturally to good political leaders.

Because of Mr Cowen’s background, because of his cultural and political formation, this was almost inevitable. His instincts, his cultural aversion to openness, his prickliness in defence of that culture, allied to an assertive and sometimes unintentionally boorish character made for a potent mix that did so much to undermine his undoubted qualities.

Nevertheless, it might be a good time to ask if we expect too much from our political leaders.

Do we expect our leaders to be as glamorous, as inspiring as Mandela or, maybe, Obama? If we do we will be disappointed. Do we expect off-the-cuff, inspiring speech making? Then we will be disappointed. Do we expect radical ideas and innovation? Prepare to be disappointed. Do we expect the next Government to change our economic circumstances in the short term? More disappointment. Do we expect meaningful reform of our political and parliamentary systems? Even more disappointment. Do we expect the Dáil to be a constructive, positive process? More of the same.

Do we expect natural, unquestioning integrity and transparency? If we do not we will be disappointed. Do we expect a determined and focussed response, based on social equity, to our difficulties? If we do not we will be disappointed. Do we expect our Government to stand between society and the worst excesses of unregulated capitalism? We did but they didn’t and the consequences will be felt for generations. Do we expect our politicians to act with an even hand and serve the greater good at all times? We may be naive to do so but we must if parliamentary democracy is to have any worthwhile meaning.

We have heard a lot from Mr Kenny and Mr Gilmore about what policies they might pursue but they could tell us how they intend to behave if their ambitions are realised, after all it was his behaviour that did so much to destroy Mr Cowen.

Mr Cowen deserves criticism but he must get a smidgen of sympathy too. He might take some comfort in the fact that he is younger than Michael Noonan was when he resigned as leader of Fine Gael in 2002. Today Mr Noonan is one of the most forceful and reassuring figures in Irish politics. If Mr Cowen chooses to he might, in time, answer that description.

But there should be no prevarication about the fact that he was a central figure in the destruction of this country and the party he so often seems to put before everything else.