Oh, how this makes my blood boil.
Here are some viewpoints on the role former Anglo-Irish Bank chairman Sean FItzpatrick played in the Irish banking crisis.
According to the judicial system…
But Judge John Aylmer ruled this morning on day 126 of the trial that the investigation carried out by the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement fell short of the impartial, unbiased investigation that an accused is entitled to.
According to Solidarity TD Richard Boyd Barrett…
Mr Boyd Barrett claimed Mr FitzPatrick walked free because of a set-up and not a blunder. “This stinks to high heaven,’’ he added.
Leas Cheann Comhairle Pat “The Cope’’ Gallagher intervened to say he was referring to a trial and should “refrain lest there might be consequences’’.
Mr Boyd Barrett said: “There is a direct link between Seánie FitzPatrick’s rotten, corrupt activities and Anglo Irish Bank and the families this week being sent to Garda stations or are sleeping in parks because there are no homes.’’
…and then we have the viewpoint of the Irish Times Legal Affairs correspondent Colm Keena
“Sean Fitzpatrick did not commit a crime.” (paraphrase)
It won’t surprise you to learn that my own views would tend to lean towards those of Deputy Barrett. And while the Irish mainstream media takes such great pains to point out that he was speaking under “privilege” as if it is some kind of cowardly act, I would put forward the proposal that the opposite is the case.
Maybe it’s true that technically Fitzpatrick did not break any laws. And I would go further in pointing out that watching him “sent down” will not make me feel any better about what the Irish banking sector did to this country.
But if the way he comported himself in both managing Anglo Irish loans and his own personal ones was “legal”, then surely it must be a priority of our parliament to bring proper laws into existence. And if we can’t bring down a sentence on him in a court of law, how about one from the court of public opinion, making sure the new laws get known as (at least commonly assuming the Dáil would never approve it) The Sean Fitzpatrick Laws.
On the subject of what actually has been done to improve legislation since the crash, here is but one recommendation of the Joint Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis published in 2016…
A personal remuneration clawback provision linked to medium term performance should be part of the employment contract for senior executive management and board members.
Just to break that down…basically it seems to suggest that if a bank is losing money, the “bigwigs” at the bank should not make money in terms of bonuses.
BUT ISN’T THAT BLOODY WELL OBVIOUS??????? Did it really have to take a group of elected representatives the guts of three years to come up with stuff like that???
Like I said, blood boiling. At least we have people like Deputy Barrett who are free to speculate as to what is really going on amongst the ranks of the establishment without fear of prosecution under libel laws by our nation’s real cowards.
#IANWAE
First Person Plural 