“DUP dont even trust their own candidates - so how can NI People trust them?” - Michael Henderson
Ulster Unionist candidate for Strangford, Castlereagh Councillor Michael Henderson has described the DUP as being in disarray, referring to the DUPs £2000 penalty for speaking out of line and the post dated resignation letter, Cllr Henderson added that if Ian Paisley didn’t even trust his own candidates how can the people of Northern Ireland?
In a statement Cllr Henderson said,
“The DUP campaign is about the tired re-hashing of old lies and self-serving comfort blanket politics. It should be remembered that for all their huff and puff about sharing power, the DUP took Executive posts and were Ministers in the previous Executive. This hypocrisy cannot go unchecked nor be conveniently be airbrushed out of history. The people of Northern Ireland are not stupid! Nobody knows what the DUP position is and to go into an election on a ticket of vagueness and innuendo is fundamentally dishonest. The electorate deserve and expect more.
Also, how can the public be expected to trust the DUPs candidates when their party leader clearly doesn’t? By forcing them to sign post-dated letters of resignation, Ian Paisley is saying that he doesn’t trust them to do his bidding so he has taken draconian measures to keep them in line. This is because he has clearly done his deal with Blair and Sinn Fein but fears that not all his candidates would back him if it is left to their own consciences.
Never before in British Parliamentary history has a party leader forced his candidates to sign such letters. It flies in the face of British standards which see the individual candidate become an elected representative with his/her own freedom to make decisions on behalf of constituents. What we have today is the nomination of stooges who can be wiped out by their Leader in consultation with a few families in his party. So much for freedom of speech and democracy!
The DUP is a party deeply uneasy with itself. It craves power but cannot handle the responsibility that comes with it. It is divided on the way forward and petrified of committing to anything. They are weak, lack confidence and are a reflection of the dire political straits that they find themselves in.”