'Time to put facts on record about councillor's co-option'
WE ARE writing in relation to the correspondence from Michael Goodman published in last week's Times (May 6) regarding the co-option of Councillor Brendan Carlin to fill the vacant seat in Antrim Line. We are glad to put the facts on record and dispel the untruths that have been put about by others.
Mr Goodman is quite right when he says that the electors of Glengormley (sic) Antrim Line elected a Sinn Fein councillor, but the fact is that when she resigned as a councillor she was not a member of Sinn Fein, she was an Independent. The party suspended her a year ago because of allegations about her personal life. Having said that, we accept that she was originally elected as a member of Sinn Fein.
At no time did Sinn Fein put forward a name for consideration as a replacement for Mrs Meehan. Indeed, a Sinn Fein Minister contacted the Alliance Party's office at Stormont on the afternoon of the vote with a query about what was going on and even at that late stage he was unable to give a name as Mrs Meehan's replacement. Sinn Fein subsequently rang the Chief Executive at Newtownabbey Council to clarify whether the meeting was going ahead, but again failed to put forward the name of a replacement. Prior to the meeting, when Brendan Carlin was appointed, there was no contact from Sinn Fein with any councillor to put forward a Sinn Fein member as a replacement for Mrs Meehan.
We feel it is important to set out some of the background to this co-option. Mrs Meehan had reached the point when she would have been disqualified as a councillor, because of her non-attendance over six months. I would argue that the Sinn Fein electors in Antrim Line were disenfranchised since 2005, when Mrs Meehan was elected, because on the rare occasion she did attend the council it was only for a very short part of a meeting. The electors definitely were disenfranchised through her complete non-attendance over the six months prior to her resignation. Sinn Fein was aware of this and took no remedial action.
Election law states that a resignation or death in office must be filled expeditiously. The council officials had put matters in train by arranging a formal meeting of the council to consider what to do about the resignation. The council faced a difficulty that if it did not put forward a name for co-option and no name had been offered by Sinn Fein, a by-election would have had to be held costing over 30,000 (and Sinn Fein would not have won that election).
Brendan Carlin is well known in the area and to members of all political parties on the council. He lives in the area and runs a recruitment company called Target Recruitment, based in Glengormley. Councillor Carlin is not a member, or supporter, of any political party. If he had been a member of any of the parties on the council he would have been unacceptable and this would have led to an objection. An objection from any member of the council at that meeting would have led to a by-election. We believe he is fully independent and he has certainly declared in his first local media interviews that he is not involved in any political party and that he comes to the council with independent views. We believe that he will do an excellent job and will be an asset to the council and Antrim Line.
Yours sincerely,
Councillor Lynn Frazer, Councillor Tom Campbell, Councillor Billy Webb (Alliance Party).
Editor's note: Mrs Meehan tendered her resignation to the council on March 16, citing "ill health" as the reason for her decision.
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Weather for Newtownabbey
Tuesday 07 February 2012
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