Sinn Féin Director of Elections Matt Carthy has accused Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil of engaging in deeply dishonest scaremongering in the dying days of the election campaign in a desperate effort to keep Sinn Féin out of government.
He said voters should choose hope over fear, and Sinn Féin’s positive message of change and a better Ireland.
Matt Carthy said:
“In a desperate attempt to prevent positive change and try to keep Sinn Féin out of government, both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have resorted to desperate scaremongering in the final days of the election campaign.
“Neither party has anything left to offer the electorate but fear. They are seeking to destroy hope of a better way and a better future.
“The truth is that the biggest threat to our economic future is the return of the ‘old guard’ of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil to government.
“Their disastrous housing policies have not only locked a whole generation out of getting a home of their own, but the crisis threatens our economic future.
“This government’s inability to ensure homes for key workers is now international news and directly threatens further foreign direct investment and new job opportunities.
“That is directly down to the housing policies of a Fianna Fáil Minister who has not only failed to grapple with this crisis, but has actually made it worse.
“Fianna Fáil is the only political party to have crashed the Irish economy and were responsible for the indignity of the IMF being brought in here to impose their agenda on our country.
“Mícheál Martin was a key member of that government. Sinn Féin will take no lectures, from Mícheál Martin in particular, about economic responsibility.
“In this campaign, Micháel Martin has refused to tell the public what the €1bn hole in their annual taxation plan means for other campaign promises.
“What measures will they now cut? That is the least the public deserve before they go to the polls on Friday.
“After Fianna Fáil destroyed our economy, the Irish people were subjected to the most brutal austerity policies by Fine Gael in government.
”As they always have and always will, Fine Gael in government protected a wealthy elite and punished ordinary taxpayers and hard working people.
“Fine Gael has never understood that an economy must serve the interests of the people, not the other way around.
“Fine Gael are also spoofers on the economy and that was evident with the exposure of a €5 billion ‘black hole’ in spending plans in their manifesto. This is a huge figure.
“They are in no position to lecture anyone on responsible management of the public finances.
“At the end of the day the choice voters face is a choice between hope and fear.
“It’s a choice between Sinn Féin’s positive, hopeful vision of a better Ireland and a government that is actually on your side, or a Government offering more of the same.
“We are asking people, when they go to the polls on Friday, to choose hope and change over negative, dishonest scaremongering.”
