‘Open’ Áras race is vital for sake of democracy
I READ, with some interest (Mail yesterday), that artist Kevin Sharkey is laying out his stall for a tilt at the Áras and wants to be Ireland’s first black president.
Being of a certain age, I remember Mr Sharkey well from his days as an RTÉ presenter. He always came across as an engaging and dynamic man. He has come through some hard times and was homeless for a period. He was born in a mother-and-baby home and grew up as a black Irishman on an island which was overwhelmingly white.
He has experienced the highs and lows of life in our republic.
Miriam O’Callaghan is also believed to be considering running too, if, as Ronan O’Reilly pointed out in his column, she stops sitting on the proverbial fence.
Both would make good presidents, in my opinion. Miriam is a national treasure, while Kevin has the common touch, insofar as he has suffered financial hardship like the majority of us.
Kevin’s foray into the Áras fray is very welcome, as Michael D Higgins has indicated that he may go for another term. We need a contest, not a one-horse race.
For most of its existence, the office of Uachtarán was seen only as a figurehead role, and the presidential seal was seen as a reward for superannuated politicians.
That was before Mary Robinson shook up the presidential election process and we, as a nation, realised we could have – and deserved – a president with intellectual clout who would make us proud on the world stage.
Robinson’s successors, Mary McAleese and Michael D Higgins, did this in spades and there is no returning to the days of the Áras as a Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael retirement home.
Neither can we drift into a situation where the presidency naturally defaults to the incumbent. An open contest is the best way to throw up candidates who may not be household names, but are worthy of our consideration.
That comes with a caveat, however. An open contest for Áras 2018 may attract a slew of wannabe celebs declaring for the Park. I remember, for example, at the height of his fame, Ronan Keating being spoken of as a serious contender for the office!
While Kevin Sharkey is a celebrity, he is still a credible contender on the grounds that he is ‘one of us’. And Miriam, while a celeb, has nothing to prove intellectually. But please, will someone email Ronan Keating and ask him not to give up the day job just yet! STEPHEN WALKER, Co. Dublin.
Sign of the times?
IS it my imagination or is President Trump’s signature getting bigger, thicker and darker each time he signs new legislation?
There was a time when a different pen was used for each letter and then given as souvenirs, although maybe that was only on the fictional West Wing with President Bartlett.
There are a number of ways of considering this signature – now getting so large that soon a crayon will need to be used – including it being a reflection of a growing ego. Or its seismographic appearance being a symbol of the political shakeups that have occurred.
When the signed documents are shown on TV, only the signature is really visible and that is not a comforting image. DENNIS FITZGERALD,
Melbourne.
Lighten up, Corrie!
I AM delighted to see that Nigel Havers is to return to Coronation Street after several years away from Weatherfield.
The old rogue will, no doubt, add some much-needed humour to the soap.
The storylines have been so grim recently that I’ve been tempted to start watching EastEnders for some light relief... DEIRDRE MURPHY,
Co. Wicklow. ...I AM disgusted at Coronation Street. It is no longer family viewing. First we have a serial killer and now a rape story before the 9pm watershed.
Are the writers trying to compete with EastEnders to see who can write the most depressing storylines? Can we please go back to it being a light-hearted family soap that cheers us all up a bit? GRAHAM DUNN, Sussex.
Pull back, Leo
RUSSIAN spy Sergei Skripal is well used to the world of danger and dirty dealings, and the fact that he has exposed his family to such horror is down to himself and his handlers in MI6.
Are you listening, Leo Varadkar? Pull back before you make an international fool of Ireland. And we really do not care who is trying to kill spies who are falling in and out of favour with their bosses. ROBERT SULLIVAN,
Co. Cork.
Food for thought
MINISTER for Justice Charlie Flanagan has said he wouldn’t have used the ‘colourful’ language employed by the Attorney General to describe Shane Ross’s Judicial Appointments Bill.
On Friday, Séamus Woulfe called the Bill a ‘dog’s dinner’. Yesterday, Charlie said he would describe it as a case of ‘too many cooks... somewhat [spoiling] the broth’.
Can I take the culinary analogy one stage further and say that I’m thoroughly ‘fed up’ of Messrs Ross and Flanagan?
TONY JONES, Co. Kilkenny.