Author Archives: Bodger

Birdy

‘sup?

Would you like to adopt Birdy, a 5-7-year-old Pittie, newly arrived at Dogs Trust, Ashbourne Road, Finglas, Dublin 11?

Dogs Trust write:

Birdy can be a little shy at first but will make friends on her terms. She likes to play with a ball and is gentle when taking food. She enjoys going for walks and relaxing with a chew.

Birdy would be suited to an adult only home as the only dog. Adopters will need to be patient with her as she adjusts to her new surroundings…

Adopt A Dog – Birdy (Dogs Trust Ireland)

 

Oh,

Meanwhile…

Um.

Meanwhile…

Bekämpa!

This morning.

A Vaccination hub at the Aviva Stadium, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.

Meanwhile…

Cases of Covid-19 in hospitals continue to reduce, according to the latest figures from the Health Service Executive.

Last night, there were 813 patients with the disease being cared for in hospitals, which is down 48 cases on the same time yesterday morning.

The number of patients in ICU with the virus has also reduced to 151.

Cases of Covid in hospitals reduce, ICU figure down (RTÉ)

RollingNews

 

Aaron Forde

This morning.

Further to the withdrawal of an offer to head the Shannon Group from Aaron Forde when details of his comment on social media were raised with Transport Minister Eamon Ryan….

Via Independent.ie”

In response to a tweet about the legal basis of public service cards, Mr Forde wrote: “Do the kn***ers who are collecting multiple SW [social welfare] payments have one.”

Mr Forde described the Green Party on Twitter as “clueless about agriculture, climate and lots of other issues”. When contacted he said he has “views on climate” as someone who spent their “life in agriculture” but added: “I wouldn’t say anyone is useless.”

In another post last summer he said Tánaiste Leo Varadkar is a “narcissist” and also called him “Leo the Leak” on at least two occasions.

In response to a tweet about members of the Traveller community seeking stables for horses on social housing developments, Mr Forde wrote: (sic) “Kn****red have the country robbed.”

In another tweet responding to a news article about the Traveller community, he wrote: “Plenty of interaction with them stealing, intimidating illegal parking etc.”

Revealed: Tweets about Travellers which led to withdrawal of Shannon Group chair appointment of Aaron Forde (Independent.ie)

RollingNews

This afternoon

Oireachtas Children Committee.

Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman is taking questions on the deletion of witness testimony from the Mother and Baby Home report.

Watch live here.

Earlier...

Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman

This morning.

Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman has defended the deletion of audio files of witness testimony at the Mother and Baby Homes Commission.

Many survivors say their testimonies were changed and the Data Protection Commissioner has asked the commission to provide a legal basis for the deletion of the records.

Via RTÉ News:

In a letter sent to the committee last week, Mr O’Gorman said the commission asked for witnesses’ permission to record their testimonies on the clear understanding that they would only be used as an aide memoire for compiling the report and would then be destroyed.

Mr O’Gorman said that while he did not speak for the commission, this approach was taken in order to protect people who wanted to engage confidentially with the inquiry.

“In the absence of such arrangements, those whom the State wished to encourage to engage with the process might have been inhibited from ever disclosing information. Such inhibition could have defeated the very objective of establishing the inquiry.”

Minister O’Gorman will appear before the Oireachtas Children Committee at 4pm.

Deletion of witness recordings at Mother and Baby Homes Commission defended (RTÉ)

Yesterday: ‘Time Is Not A Luxury That Many Survivors Have’

RollingNews

Victorian mid-terrace 6-8 Parkgate Street, Dublin 8 was deemed as being of ‘regional’ significance

Anyone?/Fight!

Proposed Additions to the Record of Protected Structures (Dublin City Council)

This afternoon.

BBC Panorama has obtained secret video messages showing the daughter of Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum imprisoned against her will.

Footage shows Princess Latifa saying she has been “a hostage” in “solitary confinement” for over a year “with no access to medical help”.

Meanwhile, Ex-UN rights envoy Mary Robinson, who had described Latifa as a “troubled young woman” after meeting her in 2018, now says she was “horribly tricked” by the princess’s family.

Via BBC:

The former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and president of Ireland has joined calls for international action to establish Latifa’s current condition and whereabouts.

“I continue to be very worried about Latifa. Things have moved on. And so I think it should be investigated,” she said.

Before her 2018 escape attempt, Latifa recorded another video which was posted on YouTube after her capture. “If you are watching this video, it’s not such a good thing, either I’m dead or I’m in a very, very, very bad situation,” she said.

It was this that sparked huge international concern and calls for her release. The UAE came under intense pressure to account for her and a meeting was arranged with Ms Robinson.

She flew to Dubai in December 2018 at the request of her friend, Princess Haya, for a lunch at which Latifa was also present.

Via BBC:

Ms Robinson told Panorama she and Princess Haya had earlier been presented with details of Latifa’s bipolar disorder, a condition she does not have.

She said she did not ask Latifa about her situation because she did not want to “increase the trauma” of Latifa’s “condition“.

Nine days after the lunch, the UAE’s foreign ministry published photographs of Ms Robinson with Latifa, which it said was proof that the princess was safe and well.

Ms Robinson said: “I was particularly tricked when the photographs went public. That was a total surprise… I was absolutely stunned.”

Princess Latifa: ‘Hostage’ ordeal of Dubai ruler’s daughter revealed (BBC)

Previously: Princess Latifa on Broadsheet