Fianna Fail has claimed that a member of its party was sent an intimidating email from a fellow Councillor at the weekend.
It’s claimed that Independent Councillor Frank McBrearty sent the email to Fianna Fail’s Councillor David Alcorn at 446am on Sunday morning.
It is not the first time tempers have flared between the Independent Councillor and Fianna Fail over the past number of years.
Fianna Fail whip, Councillor Ciaran Brogan says the email was an effort to intimidate his colleague:
But Cllr McBrearty has said that the email was actually sent on Saturday night and not in the early hours of Sunday morning.
And he has made the email available for the public to view.
Councillor McBrearty says he has nothing to hide:
The email in full is reproduced below..
Dear Cllr Alcorn
I am deeply saddened by your reaction and allegations made by you in
the local media before and after concerning the sending of your file
and the decision by SIPO in your case. I have copies of all your
comments in the media and I have had your interviews in Irish
translated into English. In my role as Mayor of the county I had
several obligations and one of those was to ensure that your right to
natural justice was protected. Documentation given to me from the
ethics registrar concerning allegations made against you which had to
be looked at by me in my role as Mayor which I took very serious and
that is why at all times I had legal advice at my disposal during my
examination into your file. I have taken very serious the comments
made by your colleague Cllr Seamus O’Domhnail on a number of occasion
directed at me in the chamber that I have acted inappropriately in the
way I dealt with your file and other’s to SIPO. My good name and the
good name of my family are very important to me as you are well aware
when my Mother stayed with you and your family in Burton Port on
occasion. My Grand Mother who was a native of Burton Port and who was
well known to you came from a very well respected family in the area.
I understand that you have no control on what other people say but I
have the right to protect my good name and my family from attack which
I did very successfully when the Gardai tried to frame me for murder.
If you acknowledge in writing to me that I have done nothing wrong
concerning my role as Mayor in dealing with your file that will be the
end of matter as far as I and my family are concerned. In the media
you have raised issue’s concerning the conduct of the council which I
at the time was the Mayor. If you have issues with the council then
you should complain to Liam Ward and the County Manager and if you are
not satisfied then you should take the appropriate action. I wish to
state to you that I acted appropriately, professionally and within the
remit I had as Mayor which was given to me by members of Donegal
County Council. At all times during my time looking at your file I was
advised by the County solicitor about my legal obligation to you in
ensuring your right to Natural justice. I hope that you will accept
what I have told you and that you will acknowledge in writing that I
have done nothing wrong in examining the file that was given to me by
Liam Ward in my role as Mayor. If this does not happen I will have a
statement which has been prepared read into the record of Donegal
County Council concerning my role and investigation conducted by me
concerning your file which was sent to SIPO. Finally I want to wish
you and your family all the best in the future and I look forward to
working with you on the Council over the next 5 months of this term of
the Council.
Yours faithfully
Cllr Frank McBrearty Jnr
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
