McNulty MLA Attends Police Interview over Garvaghy Road

“There are moments in life when you have to make a choice to do what is right, even if that decision is controversial or causes backlash.”

MLA Justin McNulty after he attended a police interview over his presence on the Garvaghey Road.

Mr McNulty said: “My actions were in defence of the rights of the Garvaghy Road residents and in the interest of society in general rather than in opposition to the law. There are moments in life when you have to make a choice to do what is right, even if that decision is controversial or causes backlash. I decided to stand on the Garvaghy Road to ensure that a parade that would have wreaked havoc on a community did not take place.

“I was proud to stand on the Garvaghy Road, shoulder to shoulder with residents. But I want to be clear - there are more important issues than me being interviewed by the Police today.

Mr McNulty said the events on the Garvaghy Road was a bomb scare created by the Police and Parades Commission which created a ‘smokescreen’ for the failures of the Executive in Stormont.

“There was a bomb scare yesterday that grounded flights around Europe including an Aer Lingus flights out of Dublin, and today RTÉ and other media outlets have been evacuated. What we saw in relation to the Drumcree march decision was a bomb scare called in by the Police and the Parades’ Commission, inadvertently or otherwise.

“The Police and the Parades’ Commission both claimed that the parade would pass along the Garvaghy Road peacefully, when even the dogs on the street knew that was never going to happen. A lot of harm was done. This caused untold stress for communities - relationships were pushed to breaking point, institutions on the brink of collapse, sectarian tensions elevated to new heights, a cost of over £3 million for policing so far, and has reflected poorly on the Orange Order. But ultimately this bomb scare is a smokescreen, so that politicians in the Executive can hide away from their failures at Stormont, and hide behind sectarianism.

“Politicians focused on this distraction need to get back to focusing on what is really important. We have Maternity Services closed at Daisy Hill Hospital, roads that are deteriorating and unfinished, a stadium that remains unbuilt, people can’t get in to see doctor, waiting lists are skyrocketing, kids can’t get places into special education units, school estates are crumbling, houses can’t be built because of inadequate wastewater infrastructure, we have an epidemic of violence against women and girls, an epidemic of addiction, an epidemic of suicide, and all the Executive parties can talk about is Drumcree?

“We all know who this smokescreen serves, and it isn’t the ordinary people who every day are fighting against the cost of living crisis, fighting to make ends meet. It’s time for politicians to come out from behind this smokescreen and get back to doing the right thing for people and communities who are struggling and to start rebuilding relationships for the greater good.

“Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine.”