Taoiseach Micheál Martin will face one of the sternest tests of his long leadership of Fianna Fáil at a party meeting on Wednesday amid widespread anger among TDs and MEPs over Jim Gavin’s abandoned presidential campaign.
In the aftermath of Mr Gavin’s shock withdrawal from the election late on Sunday night, Fianna Fáil was thrust into a day of turbulence and recrimination on Monday as the largest party in the State came to terms with having no candidate in the election.
Many Fianna Fáil representatives openly criticised Mr Martin for showing a lack of judgment in his strong backing of Mr Gavin as the preferred candidate. Some also said there was a failure to ensure appropriate due diligence was carried out in scoping out Mr Gavin’s suitability.
Fianna Fáil deputy leader Jack Chambers also came under fire from some colleagues for saying there was a contradiction between Mr Gavin not recalling he owed a tenant some €3,300 in overpaid rent and the situation that emerged the following day, when the tenant came forward with an account that had “absolute veracity”.
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Dublin MEP Barry Andrews said he would not like to hear “Jim Gavin being thrown under the bus” and said Mr Chambers “sort of implied that the party was misled” in an interview with RTÉ Radio.
“I think that’s unfortunate,” he said. “I would rather that we had a proper discussion about this at the parliamentary party.”
However, in an interview with RTÉ’s Six One News, Mr Martin suggested the inconsistency between what Mr Gavin recalled on Friday and what emerged on Saturday contributed to ending his candidacy.
“There was an issue in his life, around 2009. He clearly did not deal with it at that time or since, and probably buried it somewhere in the recesses of his mind, and didn’t deal with it. And the consequences of that have now come home.”
Mr Martin also hinted that Mr Gavin’s decision to withdraw may have been prompted by a conversation both men had on Sunday afternoon. Asked if the decision was made for him, Mr Martin replied: “I think Jim made the decision himself, but we did discuss it with him, because obviously his whole DNA is competitive, and this [was] a very difficult decision for him to make.”
Mr Martin accepted that he had strongly backed Mr Gavin. “I take responsibility for that, and I want to acknowledge that many members of the party are hurting out there today because of what has transpired.”
Mr Martin said the party had carried out vetting and checking and had specifically asked Mr Gavin if he had any issues with former tenants. He said Mr Gavin had replied he absolutely did not.
Mr Martin is expected to be questioned closely at the upcoming party meeting regarding the due diligence carried out, as well as what some TDs regard as his excessively “top-down” style of management.
Cork North-Central TD Pádraig O’Sullivan, a supporter of Billy Kelleher, said senior Ministers had been frogmarched out at the behest of Mr Martin to support Mr Gavin.
“I flagged all those concerns. We wanted a fair contest, and we certainly didn’t get one. We could have teased out the actual strengths and weaknesses of both candidates, including the Taoiseach’s preferred nominee,” he said.
Galway West TD John Connolly said he highlighted Mr Gavin’s lack of experience in politics but was reassured by Mr Martin that he could handle the political sphere, as Mary McAleese had done in 1997.
Calamity for Fianna Fáil as Jim Gavin drops out of the presidential race
Dublin Rathdown TD Shay Brennan said the party was “very angry” with the leadership at the moment.
“What happened is very problematic. It will be a robust meeting and people won’t be holding back on speaking their minds.”
TDs who spoke privately were split on the implications it would have for the party and for Mr Martin’s leadership. All agreed it was a serious issue, although Ministers thought it would have no long-term consequences.
One Minister, speaking privately, said: “The knives will be out, but Micheál remains the best person to lead us into the next general election by a country mile.”
[ The Irish Times view on Jim Gavin’s withdrawal: a Fianna Fáil fiascoOpens in new window ]
