County board chairman claims he was vilified

Dear sir - Regarding the report 'Former Meath manager calls for changes at top of Meath GAA Board' dated 14th April 2012. Coiste na Mí CLG desires to respond to the recent report which appeared on pages one and 10 of the above edition of the Meath Chronicle. Dear sir - Regarding the report 'Former Meath manager calls for changes at top of Meath GAA Board' dated 14th April 2012. Coiste na Mí CLG desires to respond to the recent report which appeared on pages one and 10 of the above edition of the Meath Chronicle. There are a number of basic tests with which an article should comply if it is to be taken seriously by the reader. These would include being well-informed, objective and balanced. From the readers point of view the article should be well worth reading. In the case of the above article none of these requirements were met as the following illustrates: • The writer should be objective and not subjective when informing his or hers readers on a particular topic. • All shades of opinions should be reflected in order to avoid bias. • The reality of the article should be authentic and not the perceived views of the writer. • When the reader has read the article, he/she should be satisfied that it can stand up to any examination or cross examination. • The views of those quoted in the article should be new and not old hash dished out to serve a particular agenda. There is absolutely no doubt that the report by your sports editor was designed to vilify the executive of Coiste na Mí CLG and in particular, the cathaoirleach. The views of the people selected were well known and predictably negative. It was at the very least mischievous on the part of your writer to be revisiting the views of people whose loyalty to put it mildly is ambivalent towards the executive. These people will not be satisfied until they take over the running of GAA affairs in the county. The irony here is that most of the contributors did have the opportunity of having a major input into the running of the GAA affairs in the county. However, alas, in nearly all cases the task proved beyond them. Nevertheless, Coiste na Mí CLG at all times acknowledge their efforts and thanked them for their services. Coiste na Mí CLG wishes to point out that the entire executive owe their positions to the democratic process. Each of them who were declared eligible, put their names forward for elective office. In all cases success was attained by resounding votes of confidence by the club delegates. The executive responded by carrying out the affairs of the county board in a fair and impartial manner befitting their mandate. At no time has any member of the executive betrayed the trust placed in them by the delegates. Coiste na Mí CLG, who supported those entrusted with the running of our games in the past, now call on all the protagonists to respect the executive's mandate and together work for the benefit of all our Gaels within the county. In the county's hour of need let us all stand up and be counted. If we do, then the association in Meath will be the real winner. I trust that you will give this response the same prominence as you did in respect of the above titled article. With reference to the writer's statement about attempts to contact the cathaoirleach for a comment, I wish to place on record that on the day in question, I received about fifty calls about various issues. I am therefore, surprised to read of the sports editor's failure to contact me for a response. Yours, Bernard O hAilín, Cathaoirleach, Coiste na Mí CLG.