Due to the way Sinn Féin handled a complaint over offensive communications made by its previous leader in the Seanad, Fine Gael has put further pressure on the party, reports RTE.
Following the victim’s newspaper piece claiming to have been 16 at the time, Fine Gael is urging opposition leader Mary Lou McDonald to amend the Dáil record.
Former Senator Niall Ó Donnghaile apologised and acknowledged earlier this week that he was the person at the core of the incident.
He added in a statement that the PSNI had determined there had been no offences, reports RTE.
On September 11, 2023, the party received a complaint regarding the text messages.
The adolescent, who was a party member when the connections were made, told the Sunday Independent in a statement.
Minister of State for European Affairs Jennifer Carroll MacNeill said: “Despite Sinn Féin repeatedly giving the false age at the time of the communications and complaint, we have established, through the teen himself, he was 16. Why did Sinn Féin continue to push this falsehood?” reports RTE.
According to the head of Sinn Féin, the PSNI was referred right away. But why the gardaí weren’t informed has been questioned by Deputy Carroll MacNeill:
“Sixteen is a child, North and South. For child protection rules, North and South. For more than a year, Mary Lou McDonald and Sinn Féin have attempted to hide the reasons as to why their former Senator was sacked for unacceptable behaviours by the party and instead preferred to provide him with cover and glowing public references,” she said, reports RTE.
According to Louise O’Reilly of Sinn Fein, Mary Lou McDonald was informed that the person was 17 at the time.
Speaking on RTÉ’s The Week in Politics, Ms O’Reilly said: “She gave the information, accurate as she knew it at the time and based on information that had been given to us by the young person,” reports RTE.
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