Cllrs 'snubbed’ by last-minute invitations

The arrival of “last-minute†invitations to the official opening last Friday of the Scoil Oilibhear Naofa school at Bettystown came in for strong criticism by councillors at a meeting of the Slane Electora Area Council of Meath County Council last Wednesday. Cllr Ann Dillon Gallagher, a member of the area council, who is also cathaoirleach of Meath County Council, said that she had only received the invitation on Tuesday of last week and she leartned that Cllr Jimmy Cudden only got his on Monday of last week. She said the members of the area council had worked hard to get the school for Bettystown and said that she had been quite annoyed about the matter. She considerd the sending late invitations as a slight on the councillors and officials who had worked hard to get the school built. Cllr Cudden said he agreed with everything the cathaoirleach had said. “As a member of the protocol committee (of the council) for the last 15 years, I am disappointed to see the role of the chairperson of the county council downgraded like this. There is a protocol for official functions within the county. The chairperson is the county's first citizen. If there was a new primary road opening in the county, it would be fair enough that the Minister for Tramnsport should open it - but in the presence of the chairperson of the council,†he declared. He said he had served on the county council for 31 years and it was “about time†that the chairperson of the council was properly recognised. “These same incidents are not happening in other counties,†he said. Previous members of the council, including the late Gerry Marry, along with Shaun Lynch and Pat Boshell had worked hard for the people of the area. Cllr Cudden said that he had no problem with the Minister for Education who was opening the school but asked: “Isn't it strange that the official invitations do not tell us who was opening the school?†He went on: “It seems to me that the inviations were an afterthought, seeing that we were supposed to reply to the invitations five days after we got it.†Cllr Wayne Harding said he agreed that the chairperson's office had been “diminished†by having the invitation going out at a late stage. He said that Slane Electoral Area councillors had not been invited to the launch of the Boyne Valley Tourism initiative at Oldbridge, either. Area manager Fiona Lawless replied that the Oldbridge function had been organised by Failte Ireland. Cllr Cudden said that the councillors had taken a decision some time ago to write to public bodies informing them of the protocol around events of this kind.