“Rose-tinted glasses” - for one and all.

Oh no, here we go again! It’s like we are on a roundabout, that’s spinning far too fast and we just cannot escape. We desperately want to jump off, before the next sick inducing rotation, as we are feeling queasy! Bully-Boy Harris however, is keeping us on, turning us faster and faster, just to see us suffer a wee bit more. Of course I am talking about the news, that we’ve another mobile lab, or not so mobile lab, or static lab, or modular lab, at University Hospital Waterford (UHW).

It’s hard to know just what it is we have been given. Even our three TDs, are befuddled as to what exactly has arrived at UHW. (Deasy, our missing fourth TD, is of course maintaining his radio silence.) The others, blame the “Information” they have been given by senior civil servants. Something about having to believe at “Face value”, the content of the memo, the letter, the text message or the email they’ve received.

Besides, why would there be any need to question the detail? We’ve never needed to mistrust a report’s specifics about Waterford, have we? Previous reports and shameless machinations gave glorious testament to our medical needs. Absolutely no stone was left unturned, to provide our citizens the fair delivery basic medical interventions in the future. Ireland, fairly and proportionately, sharing the medical Honey Pot, throughout the whole country - hmmm!

Then we find out that there may well be another report? A top secret report, which has been concealed well away from Waterford citizens’ enquiring and questioning eyes. Like so many others, I have lost the will to live, counting the number of reports at this stage. We now know that potentially, there is a favourable account out there, somewhere in the “Twilight Zone”. “Hooray”, I hear you all cry! We’ve found our Dead Sea Scrolls. Overwhelming evidence stating our irrefutable case for increased catheterization laboratory facilities at UHW. Well what a surprise, a sympathetic testimony, aligning all our ducks. Can this really be true?

Yet, our “Famous Four” are pleading the Fifth Amendment on this. There appears to be no acknowledgement or recognition, that such proof is out there. We have to ask why? Why can others find this information and yet those elected to represent us cannot? Are they basically looking in the wrong place? Are they being misdirected by those in power? Or are they simply following the wrong trail of breadcrumbs and inevitably ending up at “The Witch’s House”?

It is astonishing to see the TDs of our neighbouring counties delivering time and time again. Wexford have a lovely, sparkling new Garda station. Incidentally, one big enough to run the whole South East region. Kilkenny is positioning itself to be the administration hub of the TUSE and if JPP has his way this will happen in the next Government. It may already be a behind closed doors done deal!

Then we’ve to ask why, the ENTIRE South East is quite clearly not 100% behind the whole 24/7 campaign, for UHW. Maybe there are clandestine agreements already in place, to provide expanded hospital services out of Wexford and Kilkenny? I wouldn’t put it beyond the representatives in these constituencies, to have “Bartered a better deal!”, with Leo, Harris and Co. The only people who could actually find this out, are our own three amigos. But will they?

So once again, we’re left grasping at straws. We are hearing plenty of airwave apologies and reassurances, that the work is being done on our behalf. We are being told ad nauseam, that emails and phone calls are being made to X, Y and Z. Yet these elusive people of power, never ever seem to be available to talk to our TDs. That’s a strange one! I wonder if our neighbouring FG, FF, SF and Independents have such problems?

Just where do we go from here? Surely, at the most basic of levels, we need our TDs to dig much deeper for us? They need to be like Terriers with a bone, snapping aggressively at the heels of every single, significant civil servant.

“No comment” is now never acceptable.