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AS THE GENERAL election nears, candidates have gone on the offence to try and discredit their competitors in the hopes of securing a seat in the Dáil Éireann.
In a live broadcast from the Hodson Bay Hotel in Co Roscommon today, five candidates in the Longford-Westmeath constituency followed suit, with rows erupting between Independent candidate Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, Fianna Fáil’s Robert Troy, and Fine Gael’s Peter Burke.
Also on the programme, Saturday with Colm O Mongáin, were Sinn Féin’s Sorca Clarke, and Independent Ireland’s Paul Hogan. Both Moran and Hogan are councillors for the Athlone-Moate district. Troy, Burke, and Clarke are incumbent TDs.
When asked about immigration and housing issues in the area, Fianna Fáil TD Robert Troy said that there needed to be greater engagement between the community and Minister for Integration, Roderic O’Gorman.
Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran interrupted, saying: “Robert, you’re in government. You’re in government.” Moran said that the issue of immigration had come up on the doors during the local elections in June, particularly in relation the proposed centre of asylum seekers in the area.
“You come on today, talking about pausing it. That’s not right. You’re in government. You have to stick to the task. Your system of doing what’s required in relation to immigration is failure – just like housing. You’ve not a grip of what’s going on in the country.”
Troy responded to the comment made, saying, “If I could briefly respond, I’ve had very little time to speak today, so if I could respond to the charge that’s made to me, Minister Moran has been in -”
“I’m not a minister,” Moran corrected.
“Former Minister Moran was in government for four years. He talks about housing. This government built more houses in the five years that we were in than the last two governments combined. Combined,” Troy said.
“You must’ve bought them all, Robert,” Moran replied.
“That’s a low dig, Kevin, and it’s beneath you,” Troy said, before host Colm O Mongáin cut in.
Later on in the programme, when Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke was outlining some of Fine Gael’s commitments in terms of applying means-testing for asylum seekers, as well as accommodation issues, another spat began.
“We don’t want anyone to spend a day in a tent, and that’s what we’re trying to get away from this model to have state infrastructure to house people. We don’t want anyone in a tent,” Burke said.
“You’re at that for four years now,” Moran said.
“Kevin, you seem to be just throwing in shots here. If you let people talk or articulate. What Kevin doesn’t -”
“I’m just like Michael O’Leary,” Moran replied, referencing Burke’s controversial endorsement by the Ryanair boss at a campaign event last week, in which O’Leary made several comments disparaging teachers.
Shooting back, Burke said: “Slogans won’t have substance and won’t deliver solutions. So you’re good at slogans, you’re good at talk, but you’re not good at delivery. I think Athlone knows that quite well.”
At the end of the programme, as ‘Boxer’ Moran decried the lack of available transport in the area, and pointed to the government as being the reason behind inadequate infrastructure, Fianna Fáil’s Robert Troy piped up. “Kevin was with us one time, and he was supporting Fine Gael another time.”
Moran was previously a Fianna Fáil councillor, from 1999 until his shock resignation in 2011.
“Robert, I’m a long time gone from that! Aren’t you Fine Gael!” Moran said.
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FFG Robert Troy is a landlord of 11 homes the last time I checked. Tenants who pay more in rent to him than what a mortgage would cost, where they would have owned the house they pay for, thanks to FG policy. Change the government. Vote for a SF/Ind led govt. Homeownership over foreign fund-ownership
@F1rYnpWc: is he the guy said he couldn’t remember how many houses he had???
@F1rYnpWc: if any Independent replys ‘yes’ if asked would they go into government with Sharia Fein, RUN THEM!!
FFG flooded Ireland with Ukrainians. SF would do the same with Hamas/Hezbollah nutcases if they got half a chance!!!
@Frank Mc Carthy: He resigned because he didn’t declare three properties he had a stake in, slip of the mind I guess, happens a lot when your snout is in the trough.
@Seanie: ah sure, only 3 houses…… a ‘little’ white lie, could happen to anyone, lol
@Frank Mc Carthy: he’s the lad ,11 properties 9 of which he rents out .
Right little rat of a fella
@Finian McG: total bigot.
@Frank Mc Carthy: Boxer will remind him .
@F1rYnpWc: so? He bought his first one when he was young, working hard is something to encourage. But not something the Shinners or hard left ever do as all they offer is freebies to the work shy.
@Joe Kelly: totally proud of being Irish, and keeping it Irish.
@Johnny Wilson: well now. Im the same age as robert troy, but in the south of the country, I went from secondary school to the work force at 17, done college at night later on, i pumped as much as I could into the government’s scheme for every 4 i saved they gave me 1, locked in for a number of years, and at 27 in 2006 , i was refused a mortgage by several banks, but i had /,earned to much to qualify for social housing. Before you quote college education n such , I have several industry relevant qualifications (for my industry) and post crash 2008, i may as well sell my soul before I’ll get approval for a mortgage ,so please enlighten me how a 42yo can own 11 properties!@@
@Johnny Wilson: So ? So someone who owns 11 rental properties.. profiteering at a time of a housing and homeless crisis, whilst being an elected representative to try to solve said housing and homeless crisis is “working hard” hard according to you .. LOL. The only thing he’s working hard to do is protect his vested interests. You’re a naive little one aren’t you .. bless.
@James Brennan: So your issue is with yourself as in he has something that you think you should have too?
Your very vague on your qualifications and if that’s what you’re happy with fair enough, just because you’re the same age as the person and the results at 42 are different doesn’t simply mean that something is afoot. Perhaps he’s just more successful than you.
At 42 our wealth was fairly big on paper in 3 years it was almost gone . People can accumulate wealth at young ages.
@Finian McG: I’m Irish, and I’m disgusted that a fellow Irish is like you, This country isn’t yours alone with your racist and bigoted view… Let me say this you and your ilk are not true, Irish and you and your ilk will be crushed electorally and physically if needed…..you bring shame to Ireland.
@Paul O’Mahoney: “Physically if needed”, are yourself & the lads in the club going to batter him to death with your golf clubs ?
@Brian: Do people not need houses to rent?
@Paul O’Mahoney: So, you’re not a racist, but you are a violent thug?
@Paul O’Mahoney: Q: are you going to batter me with your economics degree parchment or your walking stick? A: you’ll do nothing.
@Paul O’Mahoney: In fairness it did help Troy that he had inside information to assist his goal of owning many properties and making lots of money.
@Finian McG: so you will vote for who
@Paul O’Mahoney: i have no issue with myself, its how he aquirred those properties is the issue, do your reaseach and then comment., to manydeqlinging with the council and to not declare intrests. Also he stats he bought his first house in 2000, straightfron school to employment but he claims he was in college for 4 years. No bank would have giving a person with less than a years work in the real world a mortgage
@Paul O’Mahoney: I have qualifications for the construction industry, also administrative qualifications, a qualification from engineering and business schools. Again like most political individuals his statements and timelines are skewed, bought his frist house in 2000 when 18, straight out of secondary school?
@Johnny Wilson: he stats he bought his first one in 2000, straight out of school at 18.
I get a very strong Tubridy vibe of Simon Harris
What about the Greens spokesman on housing objecting to a Council Housing development beside him ,and wait it gets better Roddy his boss defended it on the grounds it was his duty to make sure planning regulations were adhered to ,that would be planning regulation No 1.I presume ,Not in my back yard.
Where can one find each parties policy on immigration? I heard Harris state that Ireland is not full,so I assume his party intends to allow as many as wants come in, but what are the other parties positions ? Am I missing something here? They all seem to want to fill the country ? Yet the majority of people seem to be against it. And yes,I know the Irish spread all over the world,but I also know they had to pay for themselves when they got there.Its not the same thing, many fine doctors,trades people etc have come and do great work here,and paddle their own boats doing so.
Gwan the Independents!! Vote Independent/Nationalist if you hate the establishment parties!!!! :)
@Finian McG: ….and mass immigration to Ireland, when we have not got the infrastructure for our own people!!
@Finian McG: vote for Nazis if you hate democracy
@Finian McG: ….asylum seekers to be processed in third countries like the Italy/Albania pact!
IRELAND IS FULL!!!
@Johnny Wilson: the name-calling from the Democrats worked a treat for them lately, didn’t it??
Hahaha eejits
@Finian McG: this is Ireland, where in June’s elections here all the far right candidates got a mere 1% support.
@Finian McG: you don’t even know what a nationalist is.
@Joe Kelly: it’s not an open borders ‘republican’, that’s one thing for sure! Arthur Griffith must be spinning in his grave, the cut of ye!
@Johnny Wilson: yes, this is Ireland, where Sharia Feins and other woke leftys expected gains in the local elections went where?? ….oh yeah they went to ‘Independents and others’ …candidates who all have a credible immigration/deportation policy, unlike Mary Lou McHijab & her bosses from the North.
That’s where yer votes went. On a brighter note, it’s looking like ye might get around 10 or 11% in the GE, :)
@Finian McG: ” independents with credible immigration/ deportation policy “. We all need a bit of comedy on a Saturday night :-) .. go on then.. cite their credible policies for me.. and also just how an independent is going to bring about enacting their policy in the Dail as an independent ? go on.. I need a good follow up to your 1st joke.
@Finian McG: Independents, Independent Ireland and Freedom Party . There will be enough fools voting for the others .
Yawn. These “debates” and “policy positions” all seem a bit made up to me. It’s like everyone just boringly going through the motions of a pretend general election.
These people made my mother’s end of life horrible. Destroyed my self employed job. And Gardaí on beaches and in churches and stopping us if we went to our nearest playground.
All those TDs ( all of them) should not get 1 vote from anyone.
@Gavan Hogan: Gardai were there to enforce necessary public health measures. Also isn’t your God omnipresent so no need to go to a building to talk to him?
@Johnny Wilson: Correct me if I am wrong … Are you blaming God for the government’s bad decisions ?
Make the 3 stooges look like mensa members. FFG F off.
@Daniel Gilroy: McEntee makes them look Professors of Astrophysics!
You would pity the people in the Midlands, that these three Stooges are meant to represent, all three self fulfilling with no interest in the Irish people, three failed Politicians that have created a failed State.
@SV3tN8M4: nothing new here, we’ve had 3 stogie government running the country with over four years. Roll on the 29th of November.
@SV3tN8M4: Then you clearly don’t live in Athlone. Boxer and his gang are always out working around town whether it be clearing snow, cleaning up, he even went to a house in my estate that had been vacant for years from fire damage and covered the windows and door to keep out undesirables then put posters of windows over them to make it blend with the area. He did this even after losing his seat, but that dedication saw voters give him a huge vote in the locals. A number of years ago, he was in the river, up to his chest, during the floods, trying to help with sandbagging. Harris arrived, stuck on wellies, got a video walking beside a few puddles, and then scarpered as quickly as he arrived. He’s anything but self-fulfilling. He actually does care about his community.
@Richard Keogh: Was Boxer elected to be a member of the national parliament or to be an unpaid go-for in Athlone?
@SV3tN8M4: it could have been a lot worse. They could have included the fourth TD in the constituency – The one and only Joe Flaherty. One of Flaherty’s first actions after his election as a TD was to write a letter to a judge in support if a well known criminal family.
@Richard Keogh: I live on the river. Thst was a pure staged photo op for Boxer. How much flood defences has he achieved for the area? One of his major election promises when he got to be TD. The other two are just as useless but they called it right, he’s a great man to promise but won’t deliver
Blah, blah, blah…..I’m great, you’re not great, if I was in power I’d be great though……yada,yada, yada …… Jesus,the 29th can’t come soon enough!!!
I find it fascinating that grown men are not mature enough to drop the ridiculous nicknames, same goes for that MEP, Mong or whatever
Hilarious to see all the opinions about immigration being blamed on sinn féin. They never been in power. Who has though? Immigration drives growth in an economy by lowering wages and inflating housing market. Who has an interest it that i wonder? You might as well blame bosco? Uafásach.
Curious thread above. Is immigration being badly organised : yes. Is it the immigrants fault : no.
@offside again: why would you care… you posted before you don’t even live here?
@Frank Mc Carthy: it’s a Europeen wide issue.
@offside again: oh the irony
@sean weir: what’s ironic smart lad ?
@offside again: Replying to Sean Weir, is like arguing with a four year child!
Troy should be ousted. He is the ultimate sleeve en and mé féiner. His understanding of SIPO rules is scant. His push it of his brother-in-law’s rental payment from the state was embarrassing. His ownership of 10 or 11 family homes is disgraceful. His parliamentary contributions few and far between and have the intellectual rigour of a Junior Certificate student in a “C” class.
All backroom horse trading at the end of the election, lads
The Boxer is the only one who can relate to the patrons while the other two have personal goals and agendas to fulfill
I thought Robert Troy was ejected from the FF party.
Oooh I forget we don’t do that in Irish politics.
Instead we get so called celebrities to run in our general elections.
Who have no experience Whatsoever.!!!
Your comments on that Mr Martin head man in FF.
I will vote Aontu just to keep out the Greens and Labour.
have your say