The O’Donoghue expenses scandal was discussed recently on Today FM’s Sunday Supplement (9th August) where columnists Fiona Looney, Sarah Carey and Hugh Linehan of the Irish Times ‘enlightened’ the nation on the matter.
To his credit, Hugh Linehan, got it just about right when he said that the expenses were hugely excessive and such abuses were properly still going on.
Sarah Carey and Fiona Looney, however, thought it was all a bit of a joke.
According to Looney this all happened a long time ago – between 2005 and 2007. We can take from this that Looney would regard 1997 as ancient history when, effectively, the present regime, came to power and began the process that has brought the country to the brink of ruin.
Expressing sympathy for O’Donaghue, Looney said that different rules applied then. Sadly, she didn’t enlighten listeners as to what exactly the ‘rules’ were at the time or how they have changed in the last two years.
Sarah Carey thought the whole thing was a bit of a side show but did express puzzlement about the silence from the Opposition on the matter. She suggested that perhaps they too may have abused their expense accounts when they were last in power and were afraid that this might be exposed if they complained too much.
Here’s the reality.
The greed and arrogance of John O’Donoghue is exactly what can be expected in a corrupt state. The ignorant and mealy mouthed analysis by journalists is exactly what is to be expected from a media operating in a corrupt state.
The silence from the Opposition is exactly what is to be expected in a corrupt state. The entire political expenses system in Ireland is corrupt to the core.
Millions are robbed from taxpayers every year by ruthless and greedy politicians operating within a system designed by politicians for the sole benefit of politicians.
The Opposition is keeping quiet because they also benefit enormously from the same corrupt system, not just when they’re in power as Ms. Carey suggests, but every day, even while in opposition.
One of the principal reasons that allows greedy and ruthless politicians like O’Donoghue to abuse the system with absolute impunity is that Ireland is blighted by a lazy, uninformed and largely captured media.