Louis O'Hara (Galway East, Sinn Fein)

The General Post Office is one of the most respected sites on this island. It allows us to remember and reflect on the sacrifice of the 1916 rebels. It is our responsibility, as the generations who come after them, to commemorate their sacrifices and to work to realise the aspirations of the 1916 Proclamation. Therefore, the Government's plans to redevelop parts of the building into a mixed-use precinct, which would include retail and office units, are outrageous. Is this really the best idea the Government could come up with for a building of such cultural and historical significance? Sinn Féin has advocated for the GPO and the wider Moore Street area to become an historical quarter. Such a quarter would commemorate the sacrifice of the 1916 rebels in a way that was respectful and ensured that the GPO was a living, breathing institution.

I come from the town of Athenry where the local community holds enormous pride in our revolutionary history. Athenry was one of the main focal points outside of Dublin during the 1916 Easter Rising. It was where Liam Mellows led hundreds of Volunteers to revolt against British rule. I commend the work of Athenry Tidy Towns and the Relatives and Friends of Galway 1916 to 1923, who have created a fantastic garden in Athenry to commemorate the men and women of the 1916 Rising who took up arms for the cause of Irish freedom.

The respect and honour shown by the local Athenry community stands in direct contrast with these recent moves by the Government. What was the sacrifice of the 1916 rebels for? Was it for Carroll's Irish Gifts or Krispy Kreme doughnuts? The Government must put a stop to these plans for making the site where the 1916 Proclamation was recited into yet another bland retail space. Stop hollowing out our national monuments and act to preserve the GPO as a memorial to the sacrifices of the 1916 rebels.

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