BJD Cathaoirleach pulled from a hat

Selection of the new chair for the Ballyjamesduff Municipal District went down to drawing names from a box when voting resulted in a tied ballot. Independent councillor Shane P O'Reilly will wear the chain of office for the coming year after he was randomly selected over Fianna Fáil's Philip Brady.

Monday's AGM of the Municipal District was somewhat of an unusual situation. There were two abstentions by Fine Gael members and two votes each for the councillors who put their names forward for the position of Cathaoirleach. Before the vote Director Of Services, Eoin Doyle, explained the procedures outlined in the Local Government Act in the event of a tie.

Cllr O'Reilly, the longest serving representative in the Ballyjamesduff MD having served 18 years on the county council, was the surprise candidate. Cllr Brady was nominated by Cllr Craig Lovett and seconded by himself; while Cllr O'Reilly put himself forward and was seconded by outgoing Cathaoirleach Trevor Smith (FG).

Generally, the allocation of chairs is agreed in the first year of the council's term. However Cllr O'Reilly's split from Fianna Fáil in 2020 because of “irreconcilable differences” with the party's leadership lead to Monday's impasse.

“The deal was made after the 2020 election that I would take the chair of the council in year four,” Cathaoirleach O'Reilly told the Celt after the meeting. “Fianna Fáil decided they wanted it back, which is their democratic right.”

The continuation of the roadworks programme is one area the incoming chair identifies as a priority: “There has been a serious amount of work undertaken in the towns and villages of the Ballyjamesduff area, that will continue in the coming year,” Cathaoirleach O'Reilly said.

“Today is a great day for me personally. I am humbled and honestly I am very emotional,” he said after the meeting.

Cathaoirleach O'Reilly was pleased with the outcome. “We saw democracy in action today. If you don't have people willing to put their names forward, then you don't have democracy," he said, thanking his seconder, Cllr Smith and the other elected representatives.

"We work very well together," said Cllr O'Reilly.

In his outgoing address, Cllr Trevor Smith expressed his gratitude for the support given to him in the last 12 months to deliver on a number of projects and improvements.

“Over half a million euros has been invested in infrastructure and the Ballyjamesduff Community Council is working closely with Cavan County Council on a number of projects for the betterment of the town,” the outgoing Cathaoirleach said.

Cllr Smith also highlighting painting works and ongoing work on Derrylea Bridge in Ballyjamesduff

The outgoing chair's contribution over the last year was acknowledged by the members and the executive at the AGM of the authority. Cllr TP O'Reilly said Cllr Smith did a “super job” and highlighted the delivery of the new Ballyjamesduff Fire Station as achievements of which Cllr Smith should be proud. Cllrs Winston Bennett, Philip Brady, Shane P O'Reilly and Craig Lovett also voiced their admiration for the outgoing chair.

Director of Service Eoin Doyle described the outgoing chair as “an absolute gentleman to deal with”. He said it was clear he learned from the long political lineage his father had established with the local authority.

Disappointed

Speaking after the meeting, Fianna Fail's Philip Brady said he was “disappointed” by how matters developed in the contest for the MD chair: “What do you say?” he asked, adding his thanks to those who had supported his own nomination for the position. “I thought we were getting [the Chair], three [for Fine Gael] and two [for Fianna Fáil], obviously now as we see, that wasn't the way. You're obviously always disappointed when you lose an election, and because we felt that's what was agreed from the word go, from the very first meeting. But we trust in democracy, we let it run its course as it should, and that's what happened.”