Cut cat Conneely claws Cat Connolly’s choice, Collette
Pádraig Conneely is known to pick fights with his own toenails. Rumour has it, the outspoken Fine Gael city councillor often gets distracted on his way down to pick fights with his toenails, and ends up getting ratty with his kneecaps.
Apparently he’s been known to eat said kneecaps alive and then continue on down to his toenails. And so it was at Monday’s special meeting of Galway City Council.
The only item on the agenda was the co-option to fill the vacancy left by Independent Catherine Connolly’s election to the Dáil.
Ordinarily, it’s a five minute job. The new councillor is co-opted; everyone says a few nice words of congratulations, maybe a few photographs, and bang – it’s over. There’s usually a celebratory mood.
But not this time. Pádraig doesn’t do celebrations.
Like the bold kid that turns up at parties and bursts all the balloons, the former mayor hadn’t much cheer to spread.
In fairness, the guest of honour – Collette Connolly, who was being co-opted into her sister’s seat – wasn’t there to witness the kerfuffle. Apparently she had a pre-arranged family engagement abroad and so couldn’t make it.
But wherever she was, Collette’s ears were burning. Galway West’s newest TD, Catherine, was in the public gallery, taking notes. They’ll make interesting reading upon her return.
Anyway, it was all going swimmingly until it was Pádraig’s turn to speak. In true contrarian fashion, he went ballistic.
The grenades were lobbed at the Connolly sisters but it was the mayor, Frank Fahy, a party colleague of Pádraig’s, who got caught in the cross-fire.
Acting Chief Executive, Joe O’Neill, took some shrapnel, too.
At one point Frankeen asked Pádraig to stop shouting, to which Pádraig shouted: “I’m not shouting!”
He was puce. And when he wasn’t ‘not shouting’, Pádraig used dramatic effect – he stood up and pointed and wagged his finger – to emphasise his point.
Not everyone was entirely sure what his point was, though.
The co-option meeting was due to be in April but it was brought forward to Monday so that Collette could have a vote in the Seanad elections.
Frankeen thought that was democratic. Pádraig thought otherwise.
Then the meeting was scheduled for last Friday but for some reason it didn’t go ahead – the mayor was in Seattle, there was a mix-up etcetera.
Pádraig has places to go, people to see, so all the changing of fixtures was annoying him. Collette’s absence had him riled, too, but what really had Pádraig fired-up was Catherine’s nomination letter to the Council.
He wanted the letter read out. Frankeen refused. Pádraig shouted. Frankeen relented and read it. It was unspectacular.
The letter wasn’t dated, cried Pádraig. The envelope was, snorted Frank. Everyone else pondered the significance of this seemingly entirely useless piece of information.
Was it Deputy Connolly in the Council chamber with the undated letter? We hadn’t a Cluedo.
It was a rant of epic proportions. Pádraig never mention the ‘N’ word – nepotism – or the ‘C’ word – cronyism – but created enough noise to suggest a whiff of both.
Collette’s first meeting back in the chamber in April should be a sell-out.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.