Pat Kenny (Thursday)asked Minister for the Environment, Phil Hogan, if he got any stick from his party colleagues for his criticisms of Martin McGuinness in the recent presidential election.
No, all I was doing was ensuring that the people of Ireland when they were going to vote understood the background to all the individual candidates.
I targeted Martin McGuinness and I certainly feel that people should know what his past was and ask him to explain it.
Hogan’s response reminds me of the arrogant attitude of the Catholic Church before it lost power – we know what’s best for you ignorant peasants.
It’s this insulting arrogance that lost Hogan’s party the presidential election, the bye election and the referendum on inquiries.
The attack by Hogan and other ignorant Fine Gael politicians on McGuinness had nothing to do with what’s good for the people of Ireland.
It had everything to do with hypocrisy and snobbery – McGuinness may be good enough for the people of Northern Ireland but he’s not good enough for the Republic’s ruling elite.
If the people of Ireland had elected McGuinness we would have witnessed Hogan’s hypocrisy in all its glory.
He would have had to resign on principle or keep his job and learn to live with a ‘terrorist’ in the Áras.
Given the choice Minister Hogan would, I’m sure, have replied.
Principle, what’s a principle?