Comrades, it is both an honour and a privilege to be elected President of The Workers’ Party, and I take on the responsibilities of that position with a great sense of trepidation.
It is clear to me that along with the honour comes enormous responsibilities, not least of which is to ensure that the ideals and goals of the Party are faithfully adhered to in that we do. And, just as important, that the views and desires of the members are held as paramount as well-particularly when expressed though Ard Fheis.
In taking on the post I see my primary responsibility to be what a President should be – to preside over matters and to ensure both fairness as well as an adherence to the fundamental principles of the Party. In that regard a major part of my duties will be to preside over CEC meetings between now and the next Ard Fheis. In that role I hope to ensure that the policies and motions adopted and agreed here today will be faithfully implemented by the new CEC.
In doing that I will be ever mindful of one incontrovertible fact: YOU are the Party! And the incoming CEC’s role is to ensure that your decisions are carried out. No more and no less!
May I say at this point that we owe a great debt of gratitude to Mick Finnegan, our previous president, whose shoes I must now try to fill.
Mick has led the Party through very difficult and challenging times and has done so with pride and a deeply held passion and loyalty. He has led it to a point where, for the first time in a very long period since the betrayal of the 90’s, the Party now can begin to look forward with confidence and not back in regret. This is no mean achievement! As a result, I feel very strongly that the Party now stands on the cusp of a new, potentially progressive period in its development, and that we are entitled to look forward with confidence to a new future for our politics.
I feel this in particular when I look out and see many faces I don’t recognise-younger faces in particular, among the delegates and observers here today. And, in that regard, it is most heartening to note that there is at last a new generation now stepping forward to take our radical, progressive policies to a fresh and vital stage in its development.
I am also mightily impressed by the quality of contribution of discussion by member after member on the motions discussed and passed here today at this Ard Fheis. Indeed, if I may paraphrase some of what the General Secretary said earlier when introducing the main substantive motion, today we have restated, and clarified where necessary, what exactly it is we are and what we represent!
We have done that today! YOU have done that today! Today, YOU have stated in the clearest and most unambiguous terms possible, what it is that differentiates the Workers’ Party from the rest!
In that context, I must also paraphrase what Mick Finnegan said earlier too. He stated that we needed not just to build a powerful party for Irish workers but we needed to put that class in power!
We can and we must do just that! That is our collective task, Comrades!
Have no doubts; we will do just that! No matter how hard we have to work we will achieve that!
In that context, and in conclusion it seems most appropriate that I offer a short quote from Karl Marx.
He said, ‘Philosophers have only interpreted the world: the point is to change it!’
So Comrades; let us go out from here and do just that; let’s change our world!