Early Christmas present for Tim Cullinan

Joy and celebration in extra measures have enveloped the village of Toomevara this festive season following the election of native Tim Cullinan to the top farmer leader’s post in Ireland.
Santa came early to Mr Cullinan when he was elected President of the Irish Farmers Association, announced in Dublin last week following a hard fought nationwide campaign.
The win by the pig farmer from the townland of Ballymackey marked not only an exceptional triumph for him personally, but for his dedicated campaign team of local farmers who worked determinedly and tenaciously over several months on the nationwide canvass to get their man first over the line.
Mr Cullinan, who is to become the 16th President of the country’s largest farming organistion on January 27th, continues a proud Tipperary tradition as a stable for producing top farm organisation leaders.Tipperary natives, Joe Rae and TJ Maher previously held the position now about to be filled by Mr Cullinan, while the renowned farmers rights campaigner of the 1960s Rickard Deasy, from Carrigahorig, was President of the National Farmers Association, the precursor to the IFA.
Another Tipperary man, Pat McCormack, is currently the President of the Irish Creameary Milk Supplies Association, a powerful lobby grouping that was also previously led by Tipperary native, Sean Kelly.
There were jubilant scenes in Toomevara last Wednesday evening when Mr Cullinan returned to his native parish to be greeted by an uproarious welcome by his estatic supporters and other natives who were brimming with pride at his - and their - momentous achievement.
Amidst cheers of celebration, Mr Cullinan was lifted shoulder high in the local parish hall where he thanked his supporters and set out his stall on how he intends to use his highly influential position to seek greater rights for farmers over his leadership term.
Describing himself as “the proudest man in Ireland”, he said his election was a strong mandate from IFA members to sharpen up the organisation to deal with the many serious challenges facing farmers.
The next four years of his presidency would be among the most critical to be ever faced by farmers.
Earlier when addressing a large gathering at the count centre in the Castleknock Hotel in Dublin, Mr Cullinan said that there was never a greater need for farmers to pull together and face down the unprecedented challenges facing farming today.
“From the outset I offered myself as a candidate for change and farmers have responded,” he declared. “I want to assure all who voted for me, and those who voted for the other candidates, that IFA will be fiercely on your side with only one objective – to deliver results for farmers.
“Agriculture is a mainstay of the Irish economy and one with a celebrated international reputation. “Our IFA members and all other farmers across the country are the ones who are responsible for this. Making sure they get their fair share of income, irrespective of what that takes, will be the focus of my presidency. 
“That will mean, as my campaign slogan ran, putting the fight back into farming.”
Mr Cullinan said that the priority for the first month of his presidency will be to address the beef crisis. “This issue is by no means done. This crisis is going on for a year and a half and factories have to realise if they want a beef industry in Ireland, they will have to pay for it.”
Other priorities, he said, would be developing a general election programme with the IFA’s demands, CAP reform, the CAP budget and environmental restrictions.
Mr Cullinan thanked his own campaign team and everyone who voted for him across the country. “I have had an incredible campaign team that helped me get from a standing start in this election, from being the absolute underdog to become the next President of the IFA. That is their achievement. It is also an achievement that very much states that our members want change and they will get change.
“My supporters worked tirelessly to ensure that what I stand for and my desire to give farmers the representation they deserve was brought to the electorate. This is their presidency as much as it is mine, but it is also the presidency of each and every farmer who did not vote for me or, indeed, who did not vote at all.”
Mr Cullinan added: “I intend to represent all farmers, to do whatever is necessary to unify farmers as what we have seen of late is that the only winners when farmers are divided are the very ones we are fighting against. We must unite in whatever way we can to bring a single voice to all those who have their hands in farmers’ pockets and say that enough is enough.”　
Mr Cullinan, who is currently the IFA’s Treasurer, emerged victorious following a count of almost 23,000 votes from 944 IFA branches around the country. 
The Toomevara man headed the first count by a substantial margin. The results of that count were: Tim Cullinan - 8,334; John Coughlan - 7,402 and Angus Woods - 7,149.
Mr Cullinan was elected on the second count with 11,497 votes to John Coughlan’s 9,937 votes.
Meanwhile, at last week’s meeting of Nenagh Municipal District, Cllr Ger Darcy (FG) proposed a letter of congratulations to Mr Cullinan. A fellow farmer, he had known Mr Cullinan for many years and spoke highly of his work “behind the scenes”. “Anything he puts his mind to, he tends to be successful in,” Cllr Darcy said of the new IFA president.
Cllr Michael O’Meara (Ind) was of a similar view. “Farming never needed a man like it does Tim Cullinan at the moment,” he said, adding that the IFA had been lacking in leadership for the last 15 or 20 years. Cllr O’Meara was confident that Mr Cullinan would turn around the the fortunes of farming. 
Joining in the tributes, Cllr Joe Hannigan (Ind) was glad to see a local man become president of the national association. “If ever there was a time when the farming organisation needed leadership, now is that time,” he said.
Cllr John Carroll (FF) had worked with Mr Cullinan on the Tipperary Local Community Development Committee.“He is a person who can bring people with him,” Cllr Carroll said.