Lower Ormond councillor Ger Darcy elected Cathaoirleach

The long-serving Fine Gael councillor from Lower Ormond, Ger Darcy, has been unanimously elected as Cathaoirleach of Tipperary County Council for the coming year, the last person to act in the role up to the day of the next local elections scheduled for June next year.

Opposition groupings did not nominate an alternative candidate to contest for the position at the Annual General Meeting of the council held in Knockavilla Community Centre on Friday of last week, and the highly popular Ardcroney farmer, a county councillor for 32 years, was elected unopposed.

Cllr Peggy Ryan summed up the general respect with which Cllr Darcy is held by his fellow councillors and local authority officials by recounting the comment of a man she met at a wedding in Cork who told her: “I don’t like Fine Gael, but I do like Ger Darcy.”

It was an occasion in Knockavilla when words of congratulations came from every quarter, regardless of political hue.

PRIVILEGE

Proposing him for election to the top position on the council, fellow party member Cllr Noel Coonan said it was his privilege and pleasure to nominate Cllr Darcy for the role of Cathaoirleach.

He said Cllr Darcy was first elected to public office when he became a member of North Tipperary County Council in 1991. He came from a proud political tradition as his late father, Jim, had served on the latter council from 1967 to 1986 and was Chairman from 1975 to 1976.

Cllr Coonan said Cllr Darcy was well-versed and skilled in political life and a great representative of the farming community, having served on the boards of Arrabawn Co-op and Nenagh Mart.

He was a former member of North Tipperary Vocational Education Committee and the General Council of County Councils. He served as the last Chairman of North Tipperary County Council before it was abolished, and had served in a similar role with the Mid West Regional Authority.

“He brings vast experience to the position of Cathaoirleach,” said Cllr Coonan. “His sincerity is the main thing, you will not get a more genuine candidate than Ger Darcy.”

WORK ETHIC

Seconding the nomination, Fine Gael councillor Marie Murphy, said Cllr Darcy was going to be the tenth Cathaoirleach of Tipperary County Council, established in 2014. In his long political life he had never failed to be re-elected. “That’s a mark of the man and his work ethic. He is an absolute gentleman who will represent this council in an exemplary way for the coming year.”

On his election, Cllr Darcy received a standing ovation from local representatives, council officials and family members who had packed into the modest-sized community centre for the occasion.

Speaking as the newly elected Cathaoirleach, he said it was a great day for himself and his family. His wife Noelle, son Alan and daughter Linda were among those present on the joyous occasion.

Thanking all those who supported him, he said he was looking forward to fulfilling the busy role of Cathaoirleach over the next twelve months.

STRONG SUPPORT

Cllr Darcy said there was never any hope that he could have become a public representative without the strong support of his family, friends and Fine Gael members who had stood behind him over the past three decades.

“I was lucky enough to be elected on six successive occasions, and you don’t do that all on your own,” he said. “I’m looking forward now to the next 12 months which are going to be extremely busy.”

He said there would be a lot of government investment coming into Tipperary in the future in urban and rural development funding. This investment had the capacity to transform every town and village in the county, and he pledged to work hard to get as much funding as possible for the county.

Calling for unity of purpose from all his fellow councillors, he said: “If we can all put on the blue and gold jersey, we can all achieve a lot of things together for villages and towns.”

Cllr Michael Fitzgerald described Cllr Darcy as “a safe pair of hands and a solid guy when it comes to a situation that has to be sorted.”

Meanwhile, Cllr Seamus Hanafin was elected unopposed as Leas Cathaoirleach for the coming year. His family has served on councils in Tipperary for 72 years and he himself will have served for 20 years by the time he intends to leave public life just before next year’s local elections.