War of words erupts in Council chamber over prized memorabilia
Anton McNulty
THE Jackie Clarke Library in Ballina was described by a Castlebar councillor yesterday (Monday) as a ‘poisoned chalice’ and a monument to a Republican who ‘opposed democracy’.
A bitter war of words erupted at the monthly meeting of Mayo County Council when controversial Cllr Frank Durcan lashed out at the cost of the Jackie Clarke Library to the taxpayer and questioned how a Fine Gael-led council could back a collection which belonged to an ‘established IRA man’.
His comments were attacked by other members of the Council with Cllr Gerry Ginty telling him that he had ‘gone way too far’ and Cllr Eddie Staunton calling on him to apologise to the family of Jackie Clarke for what he said.
Earlier, Ms Sinéad McCoole, the curator of the Jackie Clarke Collection had given a presentation of a trip to New York on St Patrick’s Day where items of the collection were presented. All the councillors said the library will be an important asset to Ballina and should be promoted overseas but Cllr Durcan was a lone voice who criticised the costs of the library - which he estimated to be close to €4 million to date.
He said the same talk about the benefits it will bring to the county was brought up when the Ernie O’Malley art collection was donated to the Council and nothing had come of that. The former Fine Gael councillor also criticised the contract with the Clarke family which he said ensured that €30,000 per annum over 30 years was paid to Cllr Peter Clarke - the son of Jackie Clarke - and the recommendations that a bust of Jackie Clarke be commissioned for the Library.
“I have estimated that it will cost €7 to 8 million and we are tied into a contract so tight with the Clarke family that we will never make a ha’ penny because you cannot charge anyone to go in. It is outrageous and this contract should never have been signed and Mr [Des] Mahon (retired County Manager) has left us with a ‘poisoned chalice’. It was like buying a pig in a poke, we do not know what we have bought.
“Jackie Clarke was a Republican who didn’t accept the decision of the Civil War, or democracy, was a member of the IRA who was charged before the Special Criminal Court but was not convicted and here we have a Fine Gael council investing money on a project belonging to an established IRA man fighting the Fine Gael party. We are building a monument to a Republican who did not accept the Constitution of Ireland and democracy and the way we are going we will have a bust of Gerry Adams in every town in the next ten years,” he said.
Ballina-based councillor, Gerry Ginty said he was disappointed with Cllr Durcan’s remarks about Jackie Clarke and said he had ‘gone too far’. He said he was unapologetic about his Republican background and was proud to say he was a friend of Jackie Clarke.
“I as a Ballina man and I am proud of what is being done and make no apologises for it. I was a former comrade of his and at some stages we had differing views of what Republicanism meant. If we look around us, not one member who belongs to either Fine Gael or Fianna Fáil has come from the tradition of the gun. Jackie Clarke got on well with with all the different political parties and was respected by all,” he commented.
The Jackie Clarke Collection contains over 100,000 including many unique documents that scholars had believed to be lost - sole surviving copies of publications, rare handbills and proclamations, unpublished manuscripts and political writings. The collection is believed to be worth €15 million and the library will be stored in the former Provincial Bank in Ballina which is currently under restoration work.
Cllr Ginty acknowledged that while a huge amount of money has been spent on the library he felt the collection deserved a lasting legacy and will benefit the region for years to come.
Sinn Féin councillor Gerry Murray said that along with the Ceide Fields and Turlough House it will provide the tourism infrastructure which will bring visitors to the county. He said that Jackie Clarke and the Clarke family could have sold the collection on the market but decided to leave it in the county, and criticised Cllr Durcan for attacking his Republican traditions.
“Jackie Clarke was a unrepentant Irish Republican and if it was not for the likes of Jackie Clarke and Ernie O’Malley we in the chamber would not be looking at the Tricolour but at the Union Jack. Jackie Clarke was not ashamed of his Republicanism and when the Peace Park was opened nobody in Sinn Féin objected to that because of the spirit of respecting all traditions and I suggest he [Cllr Durcan] does likewise,” he said.
Fine Gael whip, Cllr Joe Mellet asked Cllr Durcan to reconsider his remarks made about Fine Gael which he said he did not accept and he was happy to support the opening of the library. His party colleague, Gerry Coyle said he came from a Republican background and fully acknowledged the contribution Jackie Clarke made to Mayo and said generations to come will visit Ballina to see the collection.
