Galway County councillor Gabe Cronnelly has resigned from Sinn Féin over what he has described as ongoing unrest around the way the party is dealing with unethical behaviour.
The Athenry-Oranmore area councillor said: “I am awfully disappointed at the way Sinn Féin leadership have refused to address the concerns of so many decent members here in Galway, in relation to unacceptable behaviour by a small group of people.
“It is very hard to have faith in a party which preaches one thing publicly, but fails to live up to true Republican ideals itself.
“Sinn Féin has a Constitution and a Code of Ethics which are great documents on paper, but when it comes to calling people to account who are treating others in an unprofessional manner, the rule book goes out the window.
“There are so many good people in Sinn Féin who want to make a real difference, that to let a small group of individuals who are putting themselves first in my eyes just is not acceptable.
“This has nothing to do with selection conventions because leadership have known about these problems for a long time. I was one of those who wrote to head office in April to express my concerns. The review that leadership did in the area did not improve things and made things worse rather than better.
This was not an easy decision and was not by any means taken lightly. Should a time arise in the future that circumstances within the party and the current situation may differ, then I may possibly reconsider my current position.
“I feel therefore moving forward, that I can better serve the people of the Oranmore-Athenry LEA far better as an Independent councillor and for that reason I am resigning from Sinn Féin with immediate effect.”
His resignation comes just days after Galway-based Senator Trevor Ó Clochartaigh resigned from the party, citing the same reasons.
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