Electing a President - reform urgently required
The Presidency is supposed to be above politics - party politics that is - but the political parties have seen it as being very much within their sphere of influence from the earliest days of the office.
Established on the enactment of the 1937 constitution the Irish Presidency is largely a ceremonial office but the Presidency does have particular powers such as the right to refer bills to the Supreme Court to test their constitutionality and the right to refuse a dissolution of Dail Eireann if he/she deems this to be in the national interest.
The President is also the ceremonial head of the Irish Defence Forces. However, the most important role of the President has been developed to its maximum potential by the present incumbent of the office, Mary McAleese and her immediate predecessor, Mary Robinson. Both have played an enormous role in promoting Ireland abroad and this has brought untold trade and economic benefits to the country. Both also were very much supportive of efforts to build a lasting peace in Northern Ireland.
The Irish President has in effect become a heavyweight national ambassador who commands respect when they represent Ireland on the world stage. The recent state visit of Queen Elizabeth was welcomed by the overwhelming majority of Irish people who saw it as a necessary normalisation of relationships between our two nations.
Great credit is due to President McAleese for the manner in which she represented us with such dignity - exemplifying the importance of the office of President.
We must soon elect a new President and it is a tribute to Mrs. McAleese and Mrs. Robinson that there is now such a healthy interest in the job. Last Monday's debate at Cavan County Council of a motion to support the nomination of Sean Gallagher, the well known entrepreneur, showed the sensitivities surrounding the office which is supposed to be above politics. In truth the office is never far away from the political maelstrom .
The episode does focus the urgent necessity for reform of the rules governing the election of a President. At present there is no way a person nationally respected in the community sector can get elected without ingratiating themselves with the political system - either via the local authorities or else securing the support of sufficient members of the Oireachtas. You could be President of the GAA, Ireland's largest community and sporting organisation, yet all of the GAA members in the country couldn't get your name on to the ballot paper if you desired to run for President of Ireland. This anachronism should be corrected. If there are people from the community and voluntary sector who want to run for President a mechanism should be put in place that would enable them do so without their having to go cap in hand to the political establishment. Such a move would broaden the appeal of the Presidency. The requirement that you must have the support of 20 members of the Oireachtas and of four county councils is a political benchmark - it must be changed to create a more inclusive framework for attaining the highest office in the land. It is a reform that can no longer be delayed.
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