I will read from a letter to the Taoiseach:
Dear Mr. Ahern,
I am a father of five girls aged between six and 12, all attending Scoil Mhuire Fatima, Dublin Road, Drogheda. You may recall visiting that school a little over 12 months ago. At the time you were very happy to shake everybody's hand and smile for the cameras, as you had an upcoming election. You were also happy to tell us how the new school that we had been promised for so many years was as good as started.
This is a letter from a parent, David Maher, who e-mailed the Taoiseach last week, following a meeting in Drogheda.
More than 400 children attend the school, which is in a disgraceful condition, having been built in the mid-19th century. At that time the rooms were adequate. The construction was of wood and fire safety was not an issue. The school has lasted well but it has played its part in the education of the children of Drogheda.
When the Taoiseach visited the school and saw what was happening there and the Minister, Deputy Dermot Ahern, Deputy Kirk and a bevy of Fianna Fáil candidates and their entourage visited the school and paraded up and down before the general election last year, the parents and children of Scoil Mhuire Fatima believed a new school was around the corner. This, however, is a school around the corner which will not be built if this Administration continues as it is. A new school will not be built unless the Minister looks at this matter with sincerity and determination.
The question of fire hazard is the biggest problem the children face. Everyone is concerned about the safety aspect and the fire hazard that the building presents. I understand the fire officer visited the school today. I told the parents last week they had got to get the fire officers in to inspect the school because in the event of a fire they would regret not having taken it to this stage. They would be happy if the Taoiseach, or his brother, the Minister of State, were to return to see how deeply people are concerned about what happens. One of their other concerns is that the children have to go out of the school and walk along the main Dublin-Belfast road to change classrooms. One of the playgrounds and two classrooms are leased and will no longer be available to the school from next year.
This is no way to look at the future of education in Drogheda. The Minister and his Department must do something about this school. It is not good enough to say they can spend some money on addressing some of the issues such as the electrical wiring which is so badly needed, the fact is the building has to be condemned for a modern school.
The parents cannot meet in the hall at night because it is dangerous. During the general election it was used as a polling booth but when one walked down the steps into the front of the school there was no handrail and the pavement was cracked. The entrance had to be closed as it was too dangerous for people. This meant that elderly people and others had to walk around the back of the school, over an uneven surface.
The position is clear. Promises have been made and have been broken badly by the Government. The last line of the letter states:
Do not wait, Taoiseach, until there is a terrible tragedy and you have to console family members of dead little girls. Combustible materials and hazardous wiring just do not mix. Taoiseach, you would not send your daughters to this school. Don't make us.
That speaks for itself.
