Sir, – With Gay Byrne stepping out and Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh possibly stepping in to the presidential race, are we moving from the sublime to the mellifluous? – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Given the budget deficit, and the lack of quality candidates compared to President Mary McAleese, I propose that we mothball the office of president for five years. Any regulatory duties can be delegated to the attorney general.
We would save several million on the following: 1. The cost of presidential election campaign. 2. The salary, travel and entertainment costs of the president for five years. (I am assuming no staff saving but clearly there would be some as staff would be utilised to fill vacancies in other government departments).
The other big advantage of not having a presidential campaign would be that the political parties would not be distracted for two months from the main job at hand, which is solving our present economic problems. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – With a growing number of people past the average age for life expectancy convulsing the country with a will-he-or-won’t-he tilt at the presidency, should we consider a constitutional amendment inserting an upper age limit for the office to complement the lower age limit already in place? – Yours, etc,
Sir, – The ongoing shenanigans regarding the selection of suitable candidates for the presidential election only serve to show how misguided is the Government proposal to shorten the term limit of the office from seven years to five.
Given that Independent hopefuls need to get out of the blocks early in election year to garner enough recognition to persuade local councils or Oireachtas members to endorse them, right through to the election and inauguration means that the “race for the park” takes up almost an entire year’s “headspace” in the political life of the nation.
God forbid that in future we citizens should be subjected to this soap opera one year out of every five.
The present arrangement of a maximum of two seven-year terms is exactly right for our Head of State. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Could not someone approach former Supreme Court judge Catherine McGuinness and implore her to run for presidency and end this farce? – Yours, etc,
Sir, – The late John Kelly TD called the presidency a “democratic figurehead”. He was spot on. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Sadly, it appears Gaybo is out of the running. Who else do we know who has the same media appeal and general street credibility? Who has his finger on the pulse of the nation? Surely, Dustin is your only man?
I look forward to the 1947 Silver Wraith and the Mercedes being joined in the viceregal coach house by an untaxed white Hi-Ace with dodgy brakes, and a funky Ford Cortina for those trips to the Square.
One thing, though. I seem to remember that Dustin started life as a turkey vulture. The beak gives him away – no turkey ever sported such a proboscis. Why did he reinvent himself? Was it to do with the Christmas CD and pantomime market, or something altogether shadier? His declaration as a candidate must be accompanied by a full, open and frank disclosure of his past. We don’t want any nasty surprises coming along later and biting him in the Áras. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Whoever wins the presidency, I hope he/she disappoints Charlie Neville (August 16th) and does not cross the Rubicon.
When Julius Caesar crossed that river he plunged the Roman Republic into civil war from which it never recovered. – Yours, etc,