It's time to make your voice heard
14 January 2008
Well known local Solicitor Keith Harbinson has announced his candidature for the Dromore by-election on behalf of Jim Allister's Traditional Unionist Voice.
Mr Harbinson is a keen Sportsman and when not participating, he is usually in action as a Junior referee with the Mid Ulster Referees Association. He is also a very active member of both the Orange Order and Royal Black Institution and is a member of Quilty RBP 10: he sees the latest issue regarding the flying of the Union flag from the council offices as a major concern for many people of the district. "I have spoken at length with local people about this issue and their concerns regarding it. Dromore is an established Unionist town, and many people feel the removal of the Union flag to be further erosion of their Unionist identity. What we therefore require are unionist councillors willing to tackle such issues head on, rather than simply accepting this as a done deal."
He has been working as a Solicitor in the town of Dromore for a number of years now, and he believes that his job as a Solicitor vithin the town means that he often receives a greater understanding of the local issues and problems. He said "I assist the local people of Dromore on a daily basis with a wide variety of issues and problems in a legal capacity. My being in the town every day has allowed me to see first hand the needs and concerns of its residents, and I aim now to extend this assistance into a social context, and offer them representation at local level on local issues."
Mr Harbinson explained that all issues must be brought to the table at this election. He said that "issues such as education and policing and justice whilst national issues affect everyone on a daily basis, and if the fundamentals of these policies are not laid correctly and scrutinised diligently at grass root and local government level, where they impact most, then it will have severe repercussions for our local schools and policing capabilities."
Asked why he was standing as a candidate for the "Traditional Unionist Voice", Mr Harbinson said that it was crucially important within democratic society for everyone to have their voice heard. He said, "As a Traditional Unionist, I believe in Traditional Unionist values, and many of these principles have been forsaken and diluted by other unionists leaving a lot of the electorate in the cold and dissatisfied with the current regime. I wish to offer them a voice, as well as providing them with diligent and principled representation on local issues through local government."
