Frontline drama may have impact on presidential race

I had intended to write this week about the Sean Gallagher phenomenon and to consider how the businessman had captured the public mood and how he had tapped into a desire for change. I had planned to comment on the fatal combination of poor communication, lack of vision, blandness and unwillingness to rock the boat which had characterised most of the other candidates. In particular, I was going to examine how Labour's strategy of portraying Michael D. Higgins as a safe pair of hands had backfired badly with an electorate, who after the presidencies of Robinson and McAleese, now expected more from a President. And I was to set to consider whether, in my personal opinion, Gallagher justified the public's faith in him as a fresh, modern face, who looked to the future. But all of that was blown out of the water by the dramatic events of Monday night's Frontline television programme which threw the election race into disarray. It was undeniably sensational television. Viewers watched as Gallagher struggled to deal with a question from Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness as to whether he had collected a €5,000 donation for Fianna Fáil from a particular businessman whom he had invited to a fundraising dinner. Firstly, it must be said that the fact that Gallagher may or may not have collected a cheque as part of fundraising for a political party is not, in itself, implicitly fatal to his chances. However, it does beg the question how fresh, modern and new he really is. From the outset of this campaign there has been a clear public desire for an independent face - somebody separate from the political establishment. The initial public clamour for Norris was evidence of that mood, although that support subsequently collapsed. Mary Davis, despite her attempts to expound her independent credentials, has suffered badly from the controversy over her appointments to State boards and other Gallagher, despite his Fianna Fáil roots, has cornered the independent market. The exposure of his possible involvement in the fundraising machine of Fianna Fáil may now impact on that perception of independence. However, the manner in which Gallagher dealt with the fundraising claim was the most damaging element of the programme. His prevarication and his initial attack on the businessman whom he believed was making this allegation, all seemed to many viewers to be a deflection from the question. When pressed, his use of the stock phrase "my recollection" will have brought back memories of many politicians who are mysteriously struck by amnesia when confronted by allegations. The reference to possibly collecting an envelope was also ill-advised. The implications of all this are pretty clear. It may be that Gallagher did not collect any cheque from the businessman - and simply cannot recall, as he said on the Today with Pat Kenny radio show, whether he did or not. Or it may be that he misled viewers earlier in the programme when he stoutly denied collecting a cheque and earlier in the campaign when he said he had attended the dinner but had not sought money from guests. There are other questions, though. If Gallagher is correct about his version of events, what does that say about McGuinness's judgement? And the question has to be asked: where is the man who is making these claims? Why is he not stepping forward? Events are moving swiftly and by the time of going to press some of the dynamic may have altered. And hopefully this will all be resolved soon. But it would appear to me that voters, if they had flocked to Gallagher as a new face focused on the future and representing a different generation, may now be asking themselves if he is rather a symbol of the past rather than the future. Meanwhile, it was not only Fine Gael loyalists must have been watching from behind the couch as Gay Mitchell imploded on live television.