Potter or Pollyanna? He’s ‘never better’

City Hall’s answer to Harry Potter, Councillor Niall McNelis, is an excitable individual. He’s also relentlessly positive.

So positive, in fact, it wears down more downbeat, cynical souls we know.

If you don’t believe he’s a ‘happy clappy’ councillor, call him.

The conversation will go like this:

You: “Hi Niall. How are you?”

Niall: “Never better”.

Or maybe he’ll ring you.

Niall: “Hello, it’s Niall McNelis, how are you?”

You: “Hi Niall, I’m okay, and you?”

Niall: “Never better”.

He’s ‘never better’ every time. That means every time Niall is asked how he is, he’s improved since the last time he was asked.

The Spanish Arch could have been swept away by a freak wave; a swarm of locusts could have descended on Shop Street; and Derek Nolan, his party colleague, could have become Taoiseach in a coup d’état.

But Niall – the Pollyanna of local politics – would still declare himself ‘never better’.

Tickets row  gets rough

The internal Fine Gael ‘oyster-tent ticket row’ has taken a bizarre twist.

Last week we told you how Pádraig Conneely and Frank Fahey were at loggerheads.

Pádraig went ape about the length of stay of the oyster tent at Spanish Arch. Frank said Pádraig wouldn’t have complained if he had gotten free tickets.

Pádraig demanded an apology. Frank ignored him. That was the state of play up to now.

The latest, we hear, is that Pádraig is planning a rearguard action that could see Frank lose out on becoming mayor.

Frank, apparently was in line for the mayoralty next year, in the run up to the general election.

But rumour has it that unless an apology is forthcoming, Pádraig is planning to cut a deal with the other two Fine Gael members of the City Council, John Walsh and Pearce Flannery, which would see Pearce become the next mayor.

A grovelling apology or the chain appears to be the ultimatum for poor Frankeen.

We’ll keep you posted on how that turns out!

For more, read this week’s Connacht Sentinel.