“SOME are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.”
Not even Shakespeare himself though could tell you which category Limerick’s directly-elected Mayor John Moran slots into at this stage. Either way, it’s all starting to have an air of Julius Caesar down in Merchants Quay.
The dogs of war over on the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael benches certainly seem to be gunning for him, and, who knows, there could be daggers in the wings yet.
Beware the ides of March, indeed! Mayor Moran is ambitious, so “slew him” they might.
There’s a heavy air of discontent from some corners of the corridors of Limerick City and County Council, with councillors in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael — the parties of power — understood not to be warming to him at all.
Why? Maybe it’s all show in the Council chamber, playing up to the press, all bravado for the peasants in the cheap seats. Still, there’s a strong sense of foreboding as the weeks slip by and argument after cheap shot plays out.
Elected Council members, a particular cohort of them anyway, have shown nothing but contempt for his Lordship during his short time in office so far, in a manner unbefitting of their station.
Is it sour grapes? A case of throwing the toys out of the pram? Being disruptive purely for the sake of it? Maybe all of the above.
And while the Independents have taken to Mayor Moran like plum sauce to a duck’s back, all bets do appear to be off when it comes to the lads and lassies of the two major parties.
During last month’s inaugural meeting of the Limerick Mayoral and Government Consultative Forum, attended by Taoiseach Micheál Martin, it’s understood that FF and FG councillors opted to send a strong message.
What did they do? They only went and didn’t show up for the meet and greet.
One can only imagine how that went down with poor Micheál.
The Mayor, you see, is valiant, lean, and hungry, and this doesn’t seem to satisfy our elected councillors. Rather than work with him for the greater good of the city and county, they now appear to be hellbent on finding dishonourable graves.
Change doesn’t sit with our local representatives at the best of times, so in this instance, they have opted to put gullies in Moran’s path at every juncture.
However, some of Limerick’s elected Council members tell another tale. The malcontents sing more from the pages of King Lear.
Is our directly-elected sovereign a man more sinned against than sinning?
Before we took to the polls last June, the fear was, with the eyes of the nation on us, it would all come crashing down in true opening week of European Capital of Culture splendour.
Thankfully, the Council has made it this far without plum porridge on its face. They have, indeed, put on their best best foot forward in front of visiting dignitaries, just like John and Mary in Father Ted.
Take thee heed City Fathers of the words of the great Bard, himself!
“And we must take the current when it serves, Or lose our ventures.”
Or is it more a case of — “Et tu, Brute!”
