DON'T TRY TO STOP US KNOWING WHAT HAPPENED THAT SHOCKING DAY
Don't try and stop us knowing what happened that shocking day
JOHN Reid appears to be a man of decency who values the truth, an honest politician determined to see fair play for everyone in Northern Ireland.
So now is not the time for a PR mop-up job and now is not the time to huff and puff over leaked documents.
Now is the time for the Secretary of State to stand up and prove he's a man worth listening to and a politician worth trusting.
But he's got a hell of a job ahead of him for the people of Northern Ireland are fast losing faith with a Government that stands accused of allowing 31 people to die.
They are growing tired of tough talk and promises that are increasingly ringing hollow.
The revelations from the Police Ombudsman's Office on Thursday stopped the country in its tracks and left Mr Reid angry and frustrated.
His reaction appeared questionable. He was quite right to say it is contrary to natural justice to base decisions and discussions on an inquiry that is not finished.
But the point he missed was just how desperate people are to know the details, hear the truth, understand what happened at Omagh and finally try to come to terms with their aching loss and pain.
And if someone comes to them and announces they hold the information they need, the truth they have sought for years, well, of course they're bound to listen.
He was caught on the hop and he misjudged the situation.
He let us all know just how unhappy he was to see a report that finally claimed to tell the tragic families of Omagh what they have wanted to know for more than three years.
And he swiftly pronounced the findings were not accurate.
Therefore logic would dictate that if he can announce that so fiercely, then surely he must have an idea what IS accurate.
And if that is the case, then why has he been keeping it to himself?
How can a team of professionals spend months unravelling the Omagh investigation and get it so wrong?
And why after almost a year vehemently defending the Ombudsman, did he turn on her the moment his Government came into the frame? He might criticise the press for their approach to reporting the leaked report, but the press has a duty to report the facts as they were presented.
And Dr Reid has a duty of care to every man woman and child to make sure the truth is told.
We are not a nation of babies, we are a tough people, a population not unlike the beloved Scots he left behind when he moved here.
So here's an idea - why not treat us like the adults we are, why not let us decide whether we can cope with the facts of life and death?
After all, it's a sad fact that we've had more experience than most.
On Thursday Dr Reid left doubt in the minds of the devastated relatives of the Omagh dead and injured that he had their best interests at heart.
As Secretary of State for Northern Ireland he faced a PR disaster over revelations over the bombing.
But he whinged and moaned about leaked reports, he looked for a scapegoat to point the finger at when in reality he should have simply pointed the finger at himself.
He should have said: If this is your problem, then this is my problem, I will seek the truth and you will see the evidence for you deserve to know why your lives have been devastated.
His talk about transparency, accountability, fairness and decency will wear gossamer thin unless he starts getting it right.
But of course getting it right it not just about having the facts, it's about delivering them to the people who matter, the real people.
Surely he hasn't forgotten who they are.
JOHN Reid appears to be a man of decency who values the truth, an honest politician determined to see fair play for everyone in Northern Ireland.
So now is not the time for a PR mop-up job and now is not the time to huff and puff over leaked documents.
Now is the time for the Secretary of State to stand up and prove he's a man worth listening to and a politician worth trusting.
But he's got a hell of a job ahead of him for the people of Northern Ireland are fast losing faith with a Government that stands accused of allowing 31 people to die.
They are growing tired of tough talk and promises that are increasingly ringing hollow.
The revelations from the Police Ombudsman's Office on Thursday stopped the country in its tracks and left Mr Reid angry and frustrated.
His reaction appeared questionable. He was quite right to say it is contrary to natural justice to base decisions and discussions on an inquiry that is not finished.
But the point he missed was just how desperate people are to know the details, hear the truth, understand what happened at Omagh and finally try to come to terms with their aching loss and pain.
And if someone comes to them and announces they hold the information they need, the truth they have sought for years, well, of course they're bound to listen.
He was caught on the hop and he misjudged the situation.
He let us all know just how unhappy he was to see a report that finally claimed to tell the tragic families of Omagh what they have wanted to know for more than three years.
And he swiftly pronounced the findings were not accurate.
Therefore logic would dictate that if he can announce that so fiercely, then surely he must have an idea what IS accurate.
And if that is the case, then why has he been keeping it to himself?
How can a team of professionals spend months unravelling the Omagh investigation and get it so wrong?
And why after almost a year vehemently defending the Ombudsman, did he turn on her the moment his Government came into the frame? He might criticise the press for their approach to reporting the leaked report, but the press has a duty to report the facts as they were presented.
And Dr Reid has a duty of care to every man woman and child to make sure the truth is told.
We are not a nation of babies, we are a tough people, a population not unlike the beloved Scots he left behind when he moved here.
So here's an idea - why not treat us like the adults we are, why not let us decide whether we can cope with the facts of life and death?
After all, it's a sad fact that we've had more experience than most.
On Thursday Dr Reid left doubt in the minds of the devastated relatives of the Omagh dead and injured that he had their best interests at heart.
As Secretary of State for Northern Ireland he faced a PR disaster over revelations over the bombing.
But he whinged and moaned about leaked reports, he looked for a scapegoat to point the finger at when in reality he should have simply pointed the finger at himself.
He should have said: If this is your problem, then this is my problem, I will seek the truth and you will see the evidence for you deserve to know why your lives have been devastated.
His talk about transparency, accountability, fairness and decency will wear gossamer thin unless he starts getting it right.
But of course getting it right it not just about having the facts, it's about delivering them to the people who matter, the real people.
Surely he hasn't forgotten who they are.
Further Information
Publisher: THE MIRROR
Ref: TM/142
Published Date: 08-Dec-01
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