Vaccinate leaders for the good of the nation

SO, Micheál has access to highspeed broadband and an up- todate laptop after all. With the very future of the country at stake, he managed to root around Dáil Éireann and procure a dusty old modem, one of Enda’s old computers, and a couple of HDMI cables.

As a result he no longer needs to go to Washington for St Patrick’s Day, he can chat to Uncle Joe from right here in Ireland - the wonders of technology, eh?

At one point it was suggested America wouldn’t like us anymore if Micheál didn’t visit Joe. That was scary. Upon hearing that I, for one, was ready to pack the Taoiseach’s suitcase for him, willing to roam the countryside to find the most luscious sprigs of shamrock possible and personally transport them to The White House.

But thankfully, Micheál found that laptop and disaster was averted. Himself and Joe have already exchanged details on their video conferencing call app of choice and are all set for a massive big chat on Paddy’s Day. Unfortunately my shamrock-picking skills won’t be required, but I’m sure someone as Irish as President Biden has access to his own stash.

From a PR perspective it’s the best outcome Micheál Martin could have expected; he gets to maintain relations with the most powerful nation in the western world while also avoiding the wrath of his constituents and, of course, the opposition.

The outcry if he had gone would have been deafening, ‘ Typical politician, off to America while the rest of us can’t even visit our parents,’ ‘One rule for them, another for the rest of us.’ That kind of thing.

Sinn Féin would have had a field day, used it as another example of how out-of-touch the ruling parties have become. And come election time it would have been used as a stick with which to beat Micheál and the entire Fianna Fáil party.

Right now, with tensions running higher than ever before, the last thing any politician wants to do is upset the people, give the mob further reason to bray - they’re all terrified.

Which is why they would never do what many of their US contemporaries have done and get vaccinated early. Biden and his vice-president, Kamala Harris, have both received their jabs, giving them the freedom to attend meetings and gatherings in person, to govern without fear of contracting Covid-19.

Obviously supply is more of an issue here than it is in the States, we are being vaccinated at a snail’s pace, so slow that Micheál mightn’t even be Taoiseach by the time his turn comes around. Yet, even if we were on schedule, any suggestion that the people running our country be given their jabs first would be shouted down by the masses; Sinn Féin TD’s would most likely draft up contracts explaining why they should be the last people in the world to be vaccinated, and then post said contracts up on social media for everyone to see.

But why should we be so averse to the idea of Micheál and the other 159 members of Dáil Éireann being vaccinated before some other demographics? As much as we like to grumble and complain about their inefficacy, these are the people we elected to run the country, and as such they should be provided with all the tools required to do their job.

Many of you reading this will be aware how difficult it is to work remotely, to perform to the best of your ability while sat at your kitchen table or in the spare room.

Asking a politician, particularly one tasked with making snap-judgements on the welfare of the nation, to operate under the same guidelines is not only unreasonable, it’s potentially dangerous.

You only need to look at the leaked emails sent between Tony Holohan and Health Minister Stephen Donnelly to see how information can be misinterpreted, how relations can sour.

Whereas a sarky WhatsApp message to your boss might cause a bit of embarrassment in the following day’s video call, it has far wider repercussions in the, now deserted, corridors of power. You’ll argue there are more needy people out there, the elderly, the infirm, the vulnerable, and it’s hard to go against that logic. But by immunising our leaders there’s a chance we might all receive the vaccine sooner, and on that basis alone, it’s worth bumping them up the list.