Peter Robinson and pint-sized political thinking
21 March 2008
Addressing the inaugural meeting of a new branch of TUV in West Tyrone tonight, Jim Allister highlighted the fact that tomorrow marks the 10th anniversary of the Belfast Agreement. In the course of his remarks Mr Allister said:
“Ten years ago the DUP hierarchy quite rightly rubbished those who claimed there was “no alternative” to the Belfast Agreement.
In a press release issued in May 1998 our soon to be joint First Minister Mr Robinson stated: “The Yes Brigade, unable to argue on the content of the Agreement, resort to the pathetic sound bite that there is no alternative. Such nonsense!” and went on to outline some alternatives:
• The alternative to putting terrorist godfathers in government is to keep the out
• The alternative to a rigged Assembly is a democratic one
• The alternative to forced integration through all-Ireland executive bodies is non-political co-operation.
Well said Peter! How right he was then and how hopelessly wrong he is now!
Trimble-like Mr Robinson now likes to ask, “what is the alternative?” In April 1998 he answered his own question in a speech in Tandragee in which he said:
“The hapless fools who ask what our alternative is to such a process are implicitly suggesting there is no alternative to a united Ireland process. They are not entitled to make that claim as there are many alternatives to Dublin Rule. Complete and total integration within the United Kingdom is one such alternative and the fashion of devolution given recently to Scotland within the United Kingdom is another. However, these pint-sized political thinkers are not really asking “have you got an alternative?” They are implicitly asking “what alternative have you that the IRA will accept?”
Now, of course, Peter is the “pint-sized political thinker” reduced to recycling UUP speeches from 1998 and claming that there is “no alternative” to Marty the Terrorist.”
