The inability of the government to get the blindingly obvious stuff right is breathtaking

The inability of the government to get the blindingly obvious stuff right is breathtaking - Tóibín

A construction company that built 42 schools with structural defects for the state has been given a contract by the HSE worth €14m to build an extension to University Hospital Limerick.

Commenting on the news Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín TD stated:

"The inability of the government to get the blindingly obvious stuff right is breathtaking. If a painter or a builder did a subpar job for any family or business in the country that family or business would simply not reemploy that builder again. Yet the government while in the midst of serious crisis in the department of education with 42 defective schools proceed to re-employ the same company in the Department of Health to build an extension to a hospital.

"It's mind boggling. Either the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing or something else is happening here. A procurement officer in a private business would be gone if they made such a simple error yet the Minister for Health is immune from responsibility, kept in place by a Fianna Fáil in fear of an election.

"The government has form on this. When it comes to large infrastructural projects, Fine Gael are a walking disaster. We need to ensure that there is a filter in the state procurement process that means the government and state agencies will enter contracts only with firms that have with a successful proven track record. Otherwise, citizens will have to foot the bill again and again."

The Irish political system is radically broken

In Ireland the vast majority of elected representatives put a finger in the air to check which way the political wind is blowing. They have one eye on their leaders – seeking brownie points – and another eye keeping their seat safe. If elected reps shut up and do as they’re told, they are promoted; if they stand up for what they believe in, they are demoted. No wonder we have the political class we have. No wonder one point one billion euro is being buried in a hole under the National Children’s Hospital and that Stormont is in stalemate.

Throughout Ireland, many people are now afraid to say what they feel, many are afraid to respectfully engage on a range of different topics. Many feel there is a new censorship and a new political correctness in Ireland, that opposition to the establishment is being deleted.

Respectful opposition is not the enemy. Respectful opposition is a critical element of a functional democracy. Aontú will have the backbone to stand up, without fear, for you.