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GE2024Grá for GalwayGRÁINNE SEOIGE HAS defended her candidacy, saying a political ad that caused a stir when it ran in local media in Galway was absolutely factual.
The advertisement said that cancer services in the county were the worst in the country.
A candidate for Fianna Fáil, the TV presenter failed to make a significant impact in her first election campaign. As of the seventh count, she is in eighth place in the five-seat Galway West constituency.
The reason her ad, which said she would bring in investment “to ensure all people get equal treatment in Galway”, raised eyebrows was because the outgoing Minister for Health is her Fianna Fáil colleague Stephen Donnelly, who defended Seoige at the time.
Speaking to the Irish Independent at the Galway count centre today, the well-known personality said she was humbled by the number of people who took part in her campaign.
“We actually had a lot of craic on this campaign, a lot of moments that I’m going to treasure,” she said, leaving the door open for another run.
Reporters at the count asked if she was “naive” and “ill-prepared” for the campaign while also putting it to her that the controversial ad had “landed badly with people” and “facts-wise, was hard to back up”.
“It was absolutely factual,” Seoige responded. “That campaign ad was 100% factual,” she said, mentioning it had been backed up by the research director at the National Breast Cancer Research Centre, Professor Michael Kerin.
“I wasn’t ill-prepared for the campaign, I was very well prepared for the campaign,” she said. “I ran an honest and spirited campaign and I’m very proud of that.
Asked about the criticism she received for being a so-called “celebrity candidate” who had been added to the ticket ahead of more experienced Fianna Fáil members, she said, “There was no parachuting” and that she had been selected by the party membership.
She noted that she did not like how the celebrity tag was used in a disparaging way as it indicated a person without substance. “And I have plenty of substance, and the Tánaiste himself said I was a substantive candidate yesterday,” she said.
“I am well used to labels,” she added, referencing her media career that began in the late 1990s. “It’s something that happens to women all over society and in politics even more so.”
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Think I would have preferred the bus station!
That’s all very well, but we still need a provincial bus station that isn’t a godforsaken, overcrowded helhole where buses double-park outside during the evening rush (they used to triple-park until the Luas stop got in the way) , the underground toilets are downright scary and many routes have had their Dublin terminus banished to stops on the quays that don’t even have shelters.
@Neal Ireland Hello.: spot on Neil
Instead, we got an overpriced kip, that cheats tourists out of their money. Located in an area similar to Ibiza after 12am.
@Stuart Dickens:
I understand 12 midday and 12 midnight. Please explain what is 12am.
@Donal Hanley: 12am is the same as 12pm, ambiguous as hell! When I worked security, we were trained to record 12 midnight as either 1159 on (say) Tuesday , or 1201 on Wednesday.
@Grotmaster:
Sorry Grotmaster. There is nothing ambiguous about midday and midnight. They are very precise. As to your checking in to work, that may have been due to a computer programme.
@Donal Hanley: 12:00 am is midnight :)
Its the pimple on the face of Dublin. Over priced and filthy. I stay well clear of it when im in town.
@RobbieL: maybe I am cynical but perhaps a large brown envelope exchanged hands for this to become a tourist trap instead of a bus station? Is it traditional to exchange such gifts to needy developers bearing in mind the Godawful architectural crimes on the skyline of Dublin in the recent past? Perhaps I am getting a bit paranoid?
All I’m reading is that the government failed to implement another public transportation scheme…. Pretty much the usual outcome. Who needs public infrastructure that meets demand anyways?
Probably better than an overpriced tourist trap where hardly any Dubs frequent
Temple Bar is a great source of income to the state and it contains the problem of drunken tourists in one small area making it easier to police and easier to avoid.
@Brian O Reilly: its a dump
It’s not. In the 80s it was a dump. Weeds growing out of chimneys on the point of collapsing into the streets. Squatters and glue-sniffers. A law was brought in to either repair your neglected building or sell it. Then it was transformed into a lively, clean area with good affordable restaurants and a historical trail. The EU funded part of that. It was fun to visit. But after that, the boom hit parts of Ireland, and the first million Euro apartments went in there. And it’s anyone’s guess why there is still no investment in an underground rail tunnel.
Rip off KIP.
We give out about bureacracy and the time it takes to get planning in ireland but maybe this saved dublin from turning into an eastern bloc city full of concrete. However the irish countryside has been pock marked with many ugly houses and warehouses that should have been built in industrial areas of towns and cities like most other countries.
The cheapest bus fare would have been a tenner, and late night fares would have cost fifteen euro.
Temple bar is just a large outdoor urinal and a vomit pit id have prefered a bus station
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