‘It was great to get re-elected but it really was a horrible campaign’...Tobin shaken after hammer threat on election day

An Ashbourne councillor says an incident where he was threatened with a hammer by a disgruntled member of the public on the morning of his re-election has made him question his future in politics.

Fine Gael Cllr Alan Tobin was on the street carrying out one of his public duties when he was the victim of unprovoked threatening behaviour that left him and his family shook to the core.

“It was great to get re-elected but the whole experience has been tarnished, it was a horrible, horrible campaign,” said Tobin.

“Two weeks before the election, I said to my wife, I don't know if I should be still doing this because I don't like the threatening behaviour that's happening,” he added.

“Is it going to take the death of a councillor for someone to stand up and say enough is enough?”

The Fine Gael Cllr describes what happened in the incident that saw a man unknown to him threaten him with a weapon.

“I was on the street replenishing dog waste bags when a fella stopped in his car to say best of luck in the election and another fella behind him started blowing the horn aggressively, then he started bawling out the window shouting 'traitor',” said Cllr Tobin.

“I said say that to my face and with that he went to get out of the van with a hammer and said 'I should have f***ing done you before the election, robbing the Irish vote, I'll f***ing do you now.'

“I was on the phone to my wife which wasn't nice, I said I'm going to have to go and ring the Gardai, this guy has a hammer, she heard it and my young daughter heard it and got upset, it was just horrible.”

“I took a photograph of him and reported it to the Gardai and I made a statement on it.”

The Fine Gael cllr says the incident not only tainted his re-election to Meath Co Council but has left him reconsidering his role as a public rep.

“I questioned my future in politics before this because of my family and this makes me question it again, they didn't need to hear that,” said Alan.

“I just have a fear for my kids and my family because of what's happening in Thornton Hall because this is all a consequence of Thornton Hall,” he added.

The Thornton Hall site in Fingal is due to house 1,000 asylum seekers in tented accommodation before the end of June.

It was announced recently the 156-acre site, owned by the Department of Justice, will be utilised for emergency-style tents due to the ongoing accommodation crisis.

“I'm going off social media this week because I can't be getting abused 24/7,” said Tobin. “It is just toxic and I don't want to be a part of it anymore,” he added.

“The social media companies are doing nothing about it.

“There is no point in trying to put a brave face on it all of the time.”

Tobin says action needs to be taken to bring people who carry out threatening behaviour on or offline to justice.

“We are community people who have gone into politics to try to improve our areas and these people don't understand that,” he said.

“The level of aggression seems to be acceptable and that's the annoying thing,” added the re elected councillor.

“Nobody is saying stop to this, nobody is calling these people out whatsoever and when anything happens, the gardai just stand off, they don't do anything about it.

“So much so that the locals up near Thornton Hall are in fear of the likes of that guy who threatened me.

“I have no power over whether people go into Thornton Hall or not.

“I'm thinking of British MP Jo Cox who was shot dead on her way to meet her constituents and the Slovakian prime minister who was left fighting for his life after being shot. It is just so volatile out there.

“My involvement with Friends of Ukraine where we help young families coming from a war torn country is also getting thrown back in my face.

“All of this abuse and for what? I am battling for a second playground in Ashbourne, the second biggest town, I’m struggling to get anything for my community.”

Ashbourne Gardai are looking into the incident.