Anti-Austerity Alliance bids to win two seats in the upcoming election
By Mary Dennehy
A SECONDARY school teacher from Jobstown will join Deputy Paul Murphy in the AAA’s bid to win two seats in the upcoming General Election for Dublin South West.
At a selection convention at the weekend, the AAA [Anti-Austerity Alliance] selected sitting TD Paul Murphy and St Mark’s secondary school teacher Sandra Fay to contest the election – which is, after much speculation, scheduled for spring.
It’s a year ago this month since Deputy Murphy won the Dublin South West by-election, which was held when local Fine Gael TD Brian Hayes became a Dublin MEP and headed to Brussels.
Some 12 months down the line, AAA is intent on maintaining Deputy Murphy’s seat and challenging for a second in the five-seat constituency of Dublin South West – which has around 145,000 constituents living across Tallaght, Firhouse, Knocklyon, Rathfarnham, Templeogue and Walkinstown.
According to Deputy Murphy: “The decision to stand two candidates is a sign of the growth of the AAA in the Dublin South West constituency, and nationally, and the political polarisation which is taking place in society.
“Exactly a year ago, the AAA caused a major political shock winning the Dublin South West by-election on the same day as the first major anti-water charge marches, which has changed the political landscape in Ireland.
“We now intend to seriously challenge two seats in the upcoming general election to give working class people a voice and to build a principled Left alternative in the Dáil – which opposes coalition with any right-wing parties like Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil, Labour or Renua.”
Deputy Murphy will be running alongside Sandra Fay, a member of AAA and a secondary school teacher from Jobstown.
Sandra said: “I am delighted to be selected to contest the general election. In standing in the election, the AAA will give a voice to communities that have been hit the hardest by the government’s cuts and attacks and don’t feel any benefit from the so-called recovery.
“We want to be a political voice for the working class that none of the establishment parties represent.”
She added: “Despite the government talking about recovery, people continue to be hammered by austerity.
“We are on the verge of a victory on water charges. We now need to tackle the government on the other issues which affect people on a daily basis, like the housing crisis – currently in Dublin South West there are 8,800 people on the waiting list, there is a homeless crisis and many hidden homeless because of rent allowance cuts and massive rent rises.
“There are communities that still suffer mass unemployment and people who have suffered wage cuts. There are families suffering because of cuts to child benefit and lone parents.
“We will use the election to mobilise these into building a new movement for working class people that can challenge the rule of the one per cent.”
