Category: Gardai

Penalty points scandal: Only one certainty; nobody will be held to account

If allegations that up to 50,000 penalty points cases were illegally quashed by gardai over a three year period are true then the matter can be categoried as a major corruption scandal.

And because Ireland is an intrinsically corrupt state we can say with absolute certainty, and well before any investigation reaches a conclusion, that nobody will be charged, nobody will be held accountable.

We are already seeing the standard state response to such scandals.

Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan:

We’ve proved over the years that we’re well capable of investigating ourselves.

Just one word in response to this – Donegal.

Any allegation of impropriety at whatever level within the Garda is a matter of huge concern and that’s why it’s so important to allow the Assistant Commissioner and his team to get on with the business of examing these matters and reaching proper conclusions.

This is the standard ‘nobody should talk about this matter until the (long drawn out) investigation is complete’ (and forgotten).

With luck this internal Garda investigation will be completed sometime before the end of 2013. If its publication goes unnoticed by the media the matter will be quietly dropped.

If there is a media reaction another investigation will be initiated and so on it goes.

If any lessons can be learned from the examination when it is complete these will be taken on board.

This is another standard strategy to cover any wrong doing that may appear in the report.

The wrong doing can be ignored by simply stating that lessons have been learned and it won’t happen again. When it does happen again, as it inevitably will, the process is simply repeated.

Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar:

People need to have confidence in the penalty points system and we absolutely cannot live in a country whereby people can get out of anything because they know somebody.

The corrupt system of ‘getting out of anything through knowing someone of power and influence’ is an integral part of Irish culture and has been since 1922. That corrupt culture is the sole cause of our downfall as an independent state.

I’m confident that the Garda investigation is going to be thorough and I trust them to do that.

This is either the opinion of a fool or of somebody not really interested in getting to the bottom of this scandal.

The most hilarious and bizarre response comes from Conor Faughnan of AA Roadwatch who has seen the evidence first-hand.

I do not believe this is corruption, but institutionalised bad practice that has become custom and habit over the years.

This is an extreme example of denial which is very common in Ireland.

The mindset behind it is simple – If we call it (crime/corruption) something else then it’s all right, we dont have to deal with reality, happy days.

The priority is that it stops from now, that it does not happen any more, and that is a bigger priority then raking over the coals of individual cases.

Translation: If it stops now we’ll say no more.

This attitude only applies to people of power and influence. Ordinary citizens are, of course, always subject to the full and immediate force of the law.

The priority was to clean it up and if that was done that should be the end of the matter.

Translation:

If we studiously ignore what has happened we can pretend that it didn’t actually happen at all and hope that those involved will be more careful about being caught in the future.

RTE:

The scandal was ignored on Morning Ireland (10th Dec).

The programme did, however, give extensive coverage to a murder that occurred in Northern Ireland 23 years ago.

This lack of interest in allegations of major corruption was repeated on the News at One.

The scandal got a mention at the tail end of the programme but was very cleverly folded into a report on the annual Christmas road safety campaign where it became practically invisible.

Garda Ombudsman:

You would imagine that the much lauded Garda Ombudsman would have an interest in these very serious allegations of corruption within the force.

I rang the Garda Ombudsman Office to inquire if they were investigating the matter – they’re not.

Apparently they can only investigate matters that involve complaints from members of the public who have been directly wronged by a Garda or a matter that they deem to be in the public interest

I was informed that they were ‘monitoring’ the situation and would decide what to do after the internal Garda investigation was complete.

Other state agencies ‘monitoring’ or ‘investigating’ the matter:

Department of Justice
Department of Transport
Comptroller and Auditor General
Road Safety Authority

Now that a (secret) ‘investigation’ is underway and Christmas is almost upon us it is likely that the whole unsavoury matter will be long forgotten by the time the next, inevitable, scandal breaks.

As I wrote at the beginning, there is only one certainty surrounding this whole murky matter – Nobody will be held accountable.

Garda Ombudsman: Rape threat, what rape threat?

The Garda Ombudsman has recommended disciplinary action be taken against one of five Gardai whose comments about two female Corrib gas protesters were recorded after the women were arrested.

A Garda Sergeant used the word rape but told investigators he heard the word used at the scene while the women were being arrested.

Obviously, the Garda Ombudsman has accepted this ridiculous claim.

Is the Sgt. claiming that this is the first time he’s heard the word ‘rape’ and, like a schoolboy hearing a dirty word for the first time, can’t wait to tell everyone he knows a grown up word?

The Sgt. in question has since (very conveniently) retired and so cannot be the subject of disciplinary proceedings.

So once again we witness a state official bounding across the two-foot high accountability fence into the carefree, well-paid land of retirement.

His departure is greeted with a huge sigh of relief by all those highly paid officials who labour day and night to maintain the farce of accountability in Ireland.

That the good name and credibility of the Gardai is once again seriously damaged by this ‘investigation’ doesn’t seem to bother the Garda Ombudsman in the slightest.

Matt Cooper broadcast a detailed analysis of the video recording on The Last Word today (24th).

Sgt. A: Who is them two lassies, do you know the two of them?

Garda B: I don’t know the second one; the first one is with blond hair.

Garda C: She was up in the tractor earlier on.

Sgt. A: It would do no harm to get the second one’s name again.

Garda B: She’s some yank, I don’t know who the fuck she is.

Garda C: Is she a yank?

Garda B: It sounds like it, the accent anyway.

Garda D: Sounds like a yank or Canadian

Garda B: Well, whoever, we’ll get immigration fucking on her.

Sgt A: She refused to give her name and address and told she would be arrested.

Garda B: And deported.

Sgt. A: And raped

Garda B: I wouldn’t go that far yet. She was living down at that crusty camp, fuck’s sake you’d never know what you might get.

Sgt. A: Give me your name and address or I’ll rape you.

Garda C: Hold it there, give me your name and address, I’ll Facebook you.

Sgt. A: Or I’ll definitely rape you.

Garda C: Will you be my friend on Facebook?

Gardai acting as government political force?

Protesters failed in their attempt to stage a peaceful, democratic protest during the visit of Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping because Irish police effectively abandoned their democratic obligation to allow and protect such protests.

Effectively abandoning their obligation as a civil police force for all citizens the Irish police apparently behaved as a political force acting in the interests of government.

The following is taken from RTEs This Week programme (6.30) covering an attempted protest in the Phoenix Part against the Chinese occupation of Tibet.

Protester: Can we have our property back please?

Guard: I cannot let you protest.

Protester: Why? What grounds are you taking this from us? Why?

Protester: He asked me, what is in your bag? I said there’s a couple of books and my Tibetan flag and I asked him, do you want to search and he said yes.I opened the bag and he saw the flag and said, what is this? I said this is a Tibetan flag and he said this is a public threat.

Woman protester: This is my own property.

Gurad: I’ll tell you what. It’s near 0945 now, right. This gentleman will be gone out of here at 1030.

Protester: We don’t care, we want our property back now.

Guard: We’ll give you your property back if you leave the Park, will you leave the park?

Protester: We will, we promise.

Guard: You follow us out the Castleknock gates and we’ll give you back your flags but you will not be allowed back into the park.

UDC lecturer and barrister specialising on the law of the European Convention of Human Rights said:

It would be dangerous to think that you could exclude demonstraters from those places just because they’re visible to foreign visitors.

A complaint has been submitted to the Garda Ombudsman on the matter but, as always in Ireland, people should not hold their breaths.

Witholding information to save embarrassment is always wrong

A recent report by the Garda Inspectorate found that up to 65% of child sexual offences examined in a sample of Garda records were not included in the official crime figures.

An excessively deferential approach and a reluctance to apply for search warrants to secure church records were suggested as contributory factors

Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan responded to the report by saying that the force had given ‘huge attention’ to improving its handling of child sexual abuse investigations.

This is the standard response when serious failures are revealed within the Garda, the political system, the church or the financial sector.

Mistakes were made in the past but now everything is rosy in the garden – until the next failure, the next scandal.

While the media is, by far, the most effective force in bringing state authorities to account there are occasions when sections of the media do get things wrong.

An Irish Times editorial in response to the Garda Inspectorate report tells us (My emphasis):

It is important to realise that this investigation was ordered in the aftermath of the Murphy report concerning clerical sex abuse in the Dublin archdiocese and it deals with criticisms of the Garda Síochána from 2009.

The report was delivered in 2010, as public anger over denials and cover-ups by the Catholic hierarchy overflowed and a fresh investigation was launched in the Cloyne diocese.

In the circumstances, withholding the document to avoid the Garda being caught up in public condemnations was understandable.

It is, of course, neither understandable nor acceptable that information should be withheld to save any state institution from being the subject of public odium.

The expression of public anger in response to state failures is a crucial element in a healthy democracy.

Copy to:
Irish Times

Peasant laws rigorously enforced

The Gardai and the Dept of Social Protection are involved in a major investigation into social welfare fraud.

Five people were arrested as part of the investigation and are being held in various Dublin Garda stations under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act. A large quantity of documents were also seized in the raids.

Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton said;

I’ve met with the Revenue Commissioners I’m taking new powers in the Social Welfare Act to have joint working groups.

Every Euro saved on fraud is money that can go to pay our pensioners and child benefit.

As a country we have to change the culture of social welfare and black economy fraud.

An RTE reporter excitedly reported that Garda were operating a new type of investigation whereby social welfare fraudsters can be brought before the courts on indictment thus bringing them before the higher courts almost immediately.

Gardai in the Fraud Bureau are also training Dept. of Social Protection inspectors on how to gather evidence that’s presentable before the courts.

If evidence is gathered in a particular way it will allow Gardai to get a warrant almost immediately, arrest these social welfare fraudsters and prosecute them at a higher level.

So, let’s take a break from all this exciting law enforcement to summarise the situation.

The police are taking immediate and strong action on receipt of allegations of wrong doing.

The police are arresting people suspected of financial fraud under the Criminal Justice Act.

The seizure of large quantities of documents, we presume, will in no way hinder quick prosecutions and jail sentences where appropriate.

A Government minister is actively involved in the operation and has no hesitation whatsoever in using all legislative powers at her disposal.

Politicians, police, Dept of Social Protection and the Revenue Commissioners are all working together in a concerted effort to prevent financial fraud and bring those who break the law to immediate justice.

This, of course, is the way things should be done in a real democracy. These fraudsters deserve everything they get.

Unfortunately, in a dysfunctional democracy like Ireland, law enforcement of this intensity, coordination and cooperation is strictly reserved for the peasant class.

The white collar criminals that infest the financial, political and business sectors, the vermin who destroyed our country, continue to enjoy full protection within a hopelessly corrupt state.

Gardai: Waiting for political instructions on the Callely case

On the 4th of August last Paul Gogarty TD went to his local Garda station and requested that an investigation be launched into Senator Callely’s expense claims.

Over three weeks on and we’re still waiting for the Gardai to begin an investigation.

Here’s what’s happening.

The Gardai are delaying any investigation in the hope that the matter will be resolved politically.

The politicians are desperately trying to get rid of Callely before he further exposes just how corrupt the expenses system really is.

The Gardai will take no further action until they receive instructions from their political masters.

This is how things are done in a banana republic.

Official? – Gardai act according to political priorities

Unwittingly, Michael Noonan, the Fine Gael spokesperson on finance has let the cat out of the bag regarding the relationship between politicians and the Gardai (RTE News, 5th report).

Last Tuesday, after complaining about the slow pace of the so called Garda investigation into Anglo Irish Bank, Mr. Noonan was asked did he think there was some political foot dragging.

His reply was interesting and very revealing:

Public servants, including Gardai and senior civil servants, always try to act on what they regard as ministers and government priorities and they obviously feel that there isn’t an urgency because these matters are not priorities with government.

In real democracies the police act on crime and reports of crime. In Ireland, according to Mr. Noonan, they act according to political priorities.

This explains why white collar crime is virtually unknown in Ireland.

Mutinous Gardai win battle against Government

On Tuesday 27th April last the organisation representing rank and file members of our police force committed what the Justice Minister described as an act of mutiny when they accused the Government, Fianna Fail and the Minister himself of national sabotage, corruption and facilitating criminality.

The Minister went on to say that the remarks were

An unprecedented political intervention by a Garda representative and have no place in a modern democracy

and

No democrat could tolerate such political interventions by any member of a police force.

Garda Commissioner, Fachtna Murphy, said he was not happy and would be calling in GRA General Secretary PJ Stone and new GRA President Damien McCarthy to explain their actions.

Fianna Fáil TD Niall Collins said that the outgoing president of the Garda Representative Association, Michael Boyce, (GRA) should be removed from the force for such criticism of the Government, the Minister and Fianna Fáil.

Clearly, the development was seen as extremely serious by the Government and the leadership of the Gardai and, in a functional democracy, strong and decisive action would inevitably follow – so what happened?

On Tuesday the Minister said he was going to do nothing because the Garda responsible for the mutinous statement was the outgoing president of the GRA.

Unfortunately for the Minister the incoming president of the GRA, Damien McCarthy, said he fully agreed with the outgoing president that the Government, Fianna Fail and the Minister himself had been corrupted by years of power.

This was a reiteration of the mutinous statement and provided the Minister with another opportunity to demonstrate that he understood his responsibilities as Justice Minister by taking strong and decisive action.

Predictably, however, Ahern again abdicated responsibility by issuing a wishy-washy statement calling on the GRA to apologise to the Irish people for trying to politicise the police force

The calling in of the mutinous policemen to explain their behaviour by the Garda Commissioner was just as pathetic and ineffective.

Commissioner Murphy reminded the men that they were still Guards and therefore must abide by the rules. He said he could not tolerate political comment from members of the force.

The whole farcical, keystone cops episode was accurately summed up on RTEs News at One (4th report, 2nd item) when it was reported that no action would be taken against O’Boyce because he was the outgoing president of the GRA and no action would be taken against McCarthy because he was the incoming president.

The bottom line is clear: Representatives of rank and file Gardai have (accurately) accused this Government of corruption, criminality and national sabotage.

The abject failure of the State to refute the allegations by taking strong and decisive action can, effectively, be seen as an admission that the charges are true.

This successful challenge to the authority of the State is merely the opening shot of what is to come as our republic continues to be exposed as the fraudulent and failed entity that it has always been.

Minister for Justice accepts that his government is corrupt and treasonous

Speaking on Prime Time (1st report, 2nd item) during the week, Minister for Justice, Dermot Ahern was absolutely clear about the seriousness of the challenge posed to the Government and the State by Michael Boyce at the Garda Representative Association annual conference when he accused Minister Ahern and his government of national sabotage and more (See previous post).

If this was to happen in the army it would be regarded as mutiny, that’s the reality in relation to this.

They’re the enforcers of the law that the Oireachtas passes and they cannot delve into politics because they are crossing the line.

So what are you going to do about it?

asked Miriam O’Callaghan

I’m not going to do anything because this man is outgoing.

So there you have it. The national police force accuses the Minister and his government of national sabotage, corruption and facilitating widespread criminal activity and the Minister for Justice, the man allegedly in charge, is going to do nothing on the grounds that the routine handing over of the presidency of the GRA from one Garda to another is taking place.

This is just a pathetic excuse for doing nothing by a cowardly and incompetent Minister. Apparently, the Minister’s logic is that the outgoing president, Mr. Boyce, is being replaced by a more reasonable and loyal Garda.

Since then, however, the incoming president of the GRA, Mr. Damien McCarthy, has gone on the record as saying he agrees that the Government, Fianna Fáil and the Minister for Justice have been corrupted by years of power and he supports the (treasonous) comments of his predecessor 100% and without reservation.

The situation is now crystal clear.

The national police force is in rebellion against the State and the Government. This, in my opinion, is a legitimate stance to take against a government that has betrayed its people and the rebellion is further legitimised by the (corrupt) government’s acceptance of the situation.

Copy to:
Minister for Justice

Time to replace the old rotten republic

What Irish citizens have been witnessing for the last two years is the slow but increasingly rapid disintegration of our rotten republic.

Let me be clear, this destruction of the old republic is the most significant and most positive thing to happen since independence.

The process of disintegration was triggered by the global financial crisis which had the affect of exposing Ireland for what it really is – a corrupt state.

The most serious (and welcome) incident in this process happened yesterday at the annual conference of the Garda Representative Association when the president of the GRA, Michael Boyce, circulated a speech strongly criticising the Government, Fianna Fail and the Minister for Justice.

I do not believe I am exaggerating when I say that the speech is on a par with the Proclamation of the Republic in 1916.

Obviously, neither Michael Boyce nor the GRA are declaring a rebellion but they have thrown down a very strong challenge to the ruling power which they clearly believe (just as the 1916 rebels believed about the then ruling power) have no right to govern the Irish people.

Every word of the following extract from the speech is true and it is heartening, at last, to witness somebody stand up and publicly state the truth.

We are angry at the arrogance of a government corrupted by years of power, a government whose only agenda is to protect the economic traitors.

This government has mismanaged the wealth of the country for more than a decade by allowing our assets to be plundered and robbed by bankers and speculators.

You are making generations of Irish workers pay the price for this treachery.

You did this because bankers and speculators bought your party and in return you sacrificed the greater good and prosperity of the Irish nation for the benefit of the few who have taken their ill gotten gains and secured them in tax havens around the world.

You are truly a government of national sabotage.

Apart from a military coup, this is the most serious challenge any government could face. If the police force in the UK, France or the US made such a challenge to the State there would be an immediate and strong response.

Justice Minister Dermot Ahern said the remarks were

an unprecedented political intervention by a Garda representative and have no place in a modern democracy

and

No democrat could tolerate such political interventions by any member of a police force.

If Ahern truly believes he lives in a democracy then he has no option but to take immediate action. At a minimum, the Minister should immediately sack Michael Boyce and summarily disband the GRA.

The government cannot ignore this challenge and retain any credibility, they must respond with strong action or admit, by default, that what has been uttered is true and take their leave from office.

I passionately believe that Michael Boyce and the GRA are right in their assessment of the situation and that; sooner rather than later, this corrupt government will be thrown out of power.

It is only when the mechanisms of the old corrupt regime are completely dismantled that the people of Ireland can begin the task of building a new republic.