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Minister declared a ‘responsibility free zone’

By Alan Jacques

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February 21, 2014

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A CITY councillor has criticised Minister Jan O’Sullivan for acting like a “responsibility free zone”, and said she must accept her share of the blame for the appalling conditions at Limerick University Hospital’s emergency department.

Acccording to Sinn Féin‘s Maurice Quinlivan, the reality of the situation is that Deputy O’Sullivan sits at cabinet meetings where cuts to hospital funding are decided. He believes the Limerick TD is in a “perfect position” to protect the funding for Limerick’s hospital if she chooses to speak up.

“Unfortunately, those visiting Limerick’s A&E have to pay the price for her silence as they endure the appalling conditions. Rather than sitting on the sidelines and wringing her hands in despair she needs to stand up for her constituents,” Cllr Quinlivan declared.

“The last Fianna Fáil minister from Limerick made a career of simultaneously acting as if he was both in and out of government at the same time. He was renowned for acting as if bad government decisions had nothing to do with him while at the same time he was sitting silently at the decision-making table. The late Jim Kemmy once referred to him as being “mighty mouse in Limerick and silent mouse in Dublin”.

“Unfortunately Labour’s Jan O’Sullivan is now going down the same road of acting as if she is a silent responsibility free zone,” he concluded.

The crisis in Limerick University Hospital has also been condemned by the Anti Austerity Alliance (AAA), who have called for a mass campaign to fight for the 70 extra beds demanded by the nurses union, and to reopen the other A&E units across the Mid-West.

AAA spokesperson, Cian Prendiville, who led the campaign to save the emergency department at St John’s hospital, commented, “The ongoing crisis in the Regional is an absolute emergency, and requires emergency action. However, it is no accident. It could have been predicted, and indeed it was, when they downgraded Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s A&Es.

“People are being herded into an already overcrowded A&E, creating what the nurses union the INMO have described as utter chaos”, he added.

Fellow AAA candidate and home help, Kathleen Enright, has called for health workers and the broader community to “come together and build a strong campaign for emergency action to stop the chaos”.

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Alan Jacques http://www.limerickpost.ie

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