Limerick resignations - Inauspicious beginning

The resignation of Limerick City of Culture artistic director, Karl Wallace, and two of his colleagues is a very inauspicious start to the year-long celebration.

That chairman of the organising board, Pat Cox, suggested the three resignations may be a “blessing in disguise” suggests a deeply divided organisation. It also creates a whiff of an outbreak of that great national affliction — round pegs in square holes all lubricated by exchequer funding; €6m in this instance.

The seed of this unedifying shambles was planted when Mr Cox’s former EU parliamentary assistant, Patricia Ryan, was named as the organisation’s chief executive.