Could Kilcullen field its own candidate?

A call has been made for Kilcullen to field its own independent candidate in the coming local elections, writes Brian Byrne.

Sabina Reddy, in a comment on the first post on this blog, says there is a 'golden opportunity' for such a candidate to gain maximum votes, as this time around the community 'is not fragmented'.

"Can we step up to the mark and put forward a candidate?" she asks. "If we don't, what guarantees do we have to gain equal opportunities as our neighbouring communities such as Newbridge and Naas? My fear will be if Kilcullen becomes a satellite town/community will we run the risk of being at the bottom of the list when finance is handed out for repairs and maintenance of our area?"

Sabina, who is dealing with major health issues and therefore can't put herself forward as a candidate, also raises the fear that if Kilcullen becomes more of a satellite town, will it run the risk of losing such vital facilities as the Post Office, bank or Garda Station? She is also concerned that if the Eirgrid plan goes ahead, Kilcullen will become the 'national spaghetti junction of pylons'.

"We have enough issues to deal with in the community that an independent candidate would be fine. We were strong at one stage in having a local Fine Gael branch, and we did have an active Progressive Democrats group. The late Pat Dunlea ran a very strong campaign fighting for a northern link to the motorway for the community. He lost out due to the Kilcullen election area being fragmented. We have the manpower, so the opportunity is there."

Referring to an article online about Ireland 'owning its own oil', she adds that Kilcullen needs to 'own its own community'. "If we don't, we will lose out!"