‘Gerry Carroll: A Very Cultured Demagogue’ by Donal Lavery

During a previous Question Time episode, Peter Hitchens once remarked that Lord Michael Heseltine, a notorious political operator and chameleon, was quite the “very cultured demagogue” in chasing public opinion wherever he could find favour. It resonated with me that we have our own such figure within the ranks of People Before Profit, a populist who will entertain any Tom, Dick or Harry that has a vote – even if that means articulating things which have little to no consistency or stuff which is simply not plausible.

Everyone still has to afford Gerry Carroll a “fool’s pardon”; whether it’s his maiden speech in the Assembly or his theatrical performances lacking any specifics in their erudition, he performs for the cameras with a smoke and mirrors act each time. His supporters seem to think him a cross between a working class hero and Holden Caulfield. He offers a mixture of original and sound ideas – however, none of the original ideas are sound and none of the sound ideas are original.

Prior to the last Assembly election, I messaged him repeatedly on Facebook, for all to see, asking him to outline clearly where he was going to get the money to administer the starry eyed lucrative schemes which him and his band of revolutionaries sing and protest about. I must have asked him at least four times and not once did I ever get a specific response to the question of why and how the British Treasury would fund some sort of cold-water Cuba in the North while enforcing a Bedroom Tax on their own people in Britain. In the end, he deleted me off of Facebook because he knew other people were starting to notice the risible lack of articulate responses on his part. Mr Carroll certainly doesn’t have the gift of the gab that is being able to think on his feet, so to speak. Especially not when challenged.

But what is intriguing is that the sort of people who are voting for him – including many hardened Loyalists and anti-peace process Dissidents – are fully aware that his views and policies aren’t even implementable at Stormont, which has no sovereignty, no central bank and no currency to legislate for “Heaven on Earth”. They only pen his section of the ballot-box as a penalty kick against republicans.

I’ve put questions to many other elected representatives, including some fine Unionist politicians, and they have always done their best to answer in as comprehensive and clear a way as possible. I didn’t always agree with the replies I got but I respected them for at least taking the time to get back to me, especially when they knew I wouldn’t vote for their manifestos. They were professional. Mr. Carroll on the other hand has made a living out of saying whatever he thinks will go down well but ducking and dodging questions about his very own rhetoric and ideas. He has a habit of removing people from
social media who better understand his “policies” and their implications than he even does.

Everyone knows he didn’t get elected to take any decisions, he aims to be a politico in perpetual opposition. A lone voice in the political wilderness until he gets handed his P45. He can rant and rave but offers no solutions within the context of devolution which are remotely achievable or workable. He expects the British Exchequer to lift the tab for his notoriety/ideals, partially unaware that the more dependent we are economically on British financial subvention then the more partition is reinforced in Ireland.

Anyone who has glimpsed at the forecasts for the election on Slugger O’Toole will notice that the polls suggest People Before Profit’s roller coaster is coming to a stagnant conclusion so shortly after take-off. People are waking up to the fact that none of the big seminal things or projects which have been accomplished for West Belfast are Mr. Carroll’s own doing. I told him on Facebook that his rhetoric would catch up with him, that if you talk the talk then people will expect you to walk the walk. His protest vote is evaporating and locals are recognising that a vote for his party is as constructive as two bald men fighting over a comb.

In the end, I think most people are realising that if People Before Profit became the biggest party within nationalist areas they would still have to share power with explicitly right wing Unionists. But having no experience of securing demands from the British Government or Unionist politicians, we would have blindfolded eyes giving directions to public traffic. If People Before Profit should grace your door steps, ask them candidly where they would get the money to pay for their mandates when even basic legacy inquests are being denied funding by the British state. Ask them how the Unionists will agree to these Trotskyist style economic methods and Marxist-Leninist political “wet-dreams”. For after March 2nd, we’ll know for sure that the only people responsible for ruining People Before Profit are People Before Profit.