MINISTER FOR Education Batt O'Keeffe has criticised the behaviour of a protest group from a Dublin Gaelscoil who staged a demonstration outside his family home in Cork yesterday.
Mr O'Keeffe said last night that while people who wanted to protest had every right to do so, his home was his private domain and he regretted the incident which occurred yesterday afternoon.
Parents and supporters from Gaelscoil Bharra in Cabra travelled to Cork yesterday where they held a protest outside the Minister's home in Ballincollig.
The group of 15 children and five adults was armed with a sackful of Santa letters and Christmas cards containing requests from the school's 220 pupils calling on the Minister to fund the construction of a new school building.
However, Mr O'Keeffe was working in the Dáil yesterday and his wife, Mary, was alone at the family home in the Westcliffe estate outside Ballincollig.
The lunchtime protest lasted about 20 minutes with the campaigners playing drums outside before leaving a number of petitions on the doorstep.
Although there was no formal complaint made to the gardaí, the local station in Ballincollig was aware of the protest and two officers attended the scene.
Mr O'Keeffe said people who created a clamour outside a private house and caused annoyance for neighbours set a very bad example to children. He said he regretted yesterday's incident outside his house and "expected better from an educational institution".
Since its establishment in 1996, Gaelscoil Bharra has been housed in temporary prefabs without proper heating or sanitation. Its principal, Seán Ó Donaile, said that while he did not travel on the protest because he was a State employee, "I fully support the actions of the parents. They have no apologies to make for picketing the house. They have been campaigning to no avail for 13 years."
