Durcan and Hynes lock horns in chamber

TRIGGER Yesterday’s row began as a debate over the quality of bitumen being used to resurface the county’s roads

Councillor accuses Chief Executive of running a dictatorship

Anton McNulty

There were tense scenes in Mayo County Council chamber yesterday, when a councillor accused Chief Executive Peter Hynes of running the council in a dictatorial manner.
Peter Hynes and the Castlebar-based Independent councillor Frank Durcan came to verbal blows on a number of occasions during the meeting, which was held yesterday (Monday) in Áras an Chontae in Castlebar.
The clash between the duo, which was at times heated and saw voices raised, began when Cllr Durcan accused the Council of using inferior products for surface dressing on roads.
The comment led Mr Paul Dolan, Head of Roads, to accuse some of the councillors of being ‘ill-informed’ and defend the quality of the products. Cllr Durcan did not accept Mr Dolan’s answer and claimed he received a different opinion from an expert ‘far more qualified person than you’.
At this stage, Mr Hynes interrupted Cllr Durcan. “This really has got to stop,” he said. “The councillor is casting aspersions about [staff] qualifications, and he cannot do so.
“It is a typical cheap shot without a basis, and it cannot be allowed Cathoirleach. The councillor has made another unfounded, ungrounded, irrelevant allegation, which he cannot stand over. It is another of many he has made.”
When Cllr Durcan shot back at Mr Hynes that he was ‘answerable to the people and not you Mr Hynes’, the Chief Executive replied that he was also ‘required to conform to a code of conduct’.
The Roads Programme debate continued but the two men were soon at each others throats when Mr Hynes said it was ‘unhelpful to present as fact things which are blatantly inaccurate and untrue’ and that slurs with regard to the qualifications of his staff needed ‘to stop now’.
Cllr Durcan took exception to this, and both men soon started to talk over each other. When Cllr Durcan sought the floor uninterrupted by stating that he was on his feet, Mr Hynes replied that he did not care.
“Oh is that the position so,” Cllr Durcan said in respect of the comment. “There is no point for me to be here, Mr Hynes because it seems to me that you are running this council in a dictatorial manner. I don’t think there is any point me coming in here having to endure the type of diatribe you are giving.”

Bitumen quality
Cllr Durcan reiterated his claim that the council bought bitumen that ‘did not stand up to scratch’, an accusation which Mr Hynes repeatedly stated was incorrect. Cllr Durcan also denied casting aspersions on any member of the council staff.
The issue over the type of bitumen used during surface dressing has been raised at a number of council meetings, and Mr Dolan said all bitumen used was independently tested and had never failed.
Mr Dolan said any suggestion they used an inferior product was ill-informed and undermined the reputation of the provider along with his own.
Cllr Michael Kilcoyne said he took exception to the statement that councillors were ill-informed, while Cllr Michael Holmes added surface dressings are failing, and that councillors were getting the blame from constituents.
Mr Dolan again rejected any suggestion they were using an inferior bitumen product but added that perhaps the use of the word ‘ill-informed’ was incorrect and he should have said ‘misinformed’.

Tensions escalate
This was not the first time Mr Hynes and Cllr Durcan have come to blows in the Chamber and comes just two weeks after councillors in the West Mayo Municipal District walked out of their meeting after taking exception to comments made about the councillors by Senior Planner Iain Douglas.
The walk-out came when Mr Douglas claimed the councillors were not qualified to comment on issues of planning during a heated discussion on planning applications in the district.
The matter was briefly referred to at yesterday’s meeting by Westport-based Fianna FΡil councillor Brendan Mulroy, who said councillors will not attend their next Municipal meeting until the matter is dealt with. It was agreed that councillors and council staff will meet before then to try to resolve their disagreements.