Libertas chief lacks courage for election battle, says FG
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Declan Ganley was accused by Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny yesterday of lacking the "courage" to run in the European elections.
The Libertas chief launched a pan-European party at his plush office in the EU quarter of Brussels. Mr Ganley said he was adopting a Barack Obama-style internet fundraising campaign to fund his new cross-European party.
But questions still persisted about the funding of his organisation to date.
Mr Ganley said he wanted to run candidates in all 27 EU countries. Yet he couldn't name potential candidates or precisely how many he hopes to have.
Candidate
He is expected to run in Connacht-Ulster himself, but he still says he has not made up his mind on whether he is going to be a candidate, despite being the leader of the group.
"I would like to. I haven't made that final decision it. This isn't about me," he said in response to a query on his potential candidacy.
But Mr Kenny questioned if Mr Ganley had the courage to put himself forward as a candidate. "I thought he was going to declare for Connacht-Ulster, that would have been the impression that was out there for some time, but obviously maybe he lacks the courage to do that. It is a matter for Mr Ganley whether he wants a political party, membership and all of that," he said.
In response to Mr Kenny, a spokesman for Mr Ganley said that, unlike the Fine Gael leader, the Libertas head showed leadership and takes contesting elections seriously.
"He wishes to stand in Connacht-Ulster and will make an announcement in due course," the spokesman said.
Meanwhile, Mr Ganley is looking to run candidates in next year's European elections.
"If people want a strong and healthy Europe that is democratic and answerable to them, they should vote for a Libertas candidate," he said.
Libertas will unveil a policy document before the elections and will hold a party congress, Mr Ganley said.
"The Irish Government and the powerful elite in Brussels are showing utter contempt for the democratic decision of the Irish people in rejecting the Lisbon Treaty," he said.
Mr Ganley said Libertas would seek to raise funds via its website and can now accept donations up to €12,000.
The businessman again said Libertas spent €800,000 in the Lisbon campaign, only raised money from Irish donors and fully complied with regulations.
The Libertas office in Brussels is funded by the Libertas Institute in Ireland, he added.
- Fionnan Sheahan Political Editor in Brussels
