The constituency office of Charles Ward TD has been officially opened in Ballybofey.
It also marks the first constituency office set up by a 100% Redress Party politician.
At its opening yesterday, Deputy Ward stated that he and his party would “put Donegal on the map” as a large crowd of friends, family and party colleagues attended the opening ceremony.
Deputy Ward’s four children officially cut the ribbon to mark the opening of the new constituency office, following a glowing speech from his wife, Angela Ward, who had said her husband hadn’t entered politics “with polish or privilege but with purpose.”
Speaking to attendees, Charles joked that they were “going to be the Healy-Raes.”
He said: “I want to say a big thank you to everybody who showed up here, my work colleagues, councillors, my team. Over the next four and a half years, we are going to put Donegal on the map.”
“We are born out of necessity, but we are here, and we will continue to go. There are 29 counties affected by defective concrete, but by the time we are done, we will make sure that Donegal is done. That is our plan and that is our aim.”
“The importance of this opening for our party is that we have gone from local level to national level, and now we have a constituency office. The constituency office will be the core of every single region.”
“I am on the floor constantly, between Malin Head, all the way down to Laghey, all the way out west to Arranmore, Gaoth Dobhair – you name it, we are there.”
When speaking about how he has settled into his new role as TD, Ward stated: “It is extremely challenging. I have four young children, and now my life has gone from a dad to a dad and politician.”
“I am in Dublin half the week, and I am in Donegal the rest of the week. When I am in Donegal, I am working, but I am also aware that I have family and responsibilities. I have to give that time also.”
“It is more demanding than I thought it was. It is very time-consuming, and it never stops. But I am here for the people. I am here to put Donegal back on the map. As far as I am concerned, we are the forgotten county.”
“When I go to Dublin, I see the way it is. When politicians talk about Donegal, you would think they are talking about a different planet. We have the same rights as the rest of Ireland, but we are just underdeveloped and under-valued, I feel.”
Glenties MD 100% Redress councillor, Denis McGee, spoke of his pride for his party colleague at the opening yesterday.
“It is very emotional listening to him and his speech, with what he has been through and what we have all been through,” said Cllr McGee.
“He has come a long way as he used to work in the Arranmore ferry and now he has a constituency office as a TD.”
Inishowen MD 100% Redress representative, Cllr Joy Beard, said: “I am absolutely delighted. We are here to celebrate the opening. It is very much a place for the people that we represent to come to and get support.”
“It is here for everybody, no matter what their issue is, but obviously the defective block crisis has elements of people’s lives. It is great that they can come to this office, speak to whom they need to speak to, get the relevant information and a bit of guidance.”
Fellow Inishowen MD 100% Redress representative, Cllr Ali Farren, commented: “This is a good day for us as a party, and it is a credit to Charles that he decided to put his office in Ballybofey, the town closest to where he lives.”
“It is 100km from Malin Head, and 60km from Bundoran, so he is quite central for the whole of Donegal. This is an asset for the area.”
100% Redress Cllr Tomás Seán Devine of Letterkenny-Milford MD, said: “We have come a long way in less than two years from forming, to being a party with four councillors and a TD.”
“It means an awful lot for me, Charles, and the rest of the team. Now there is an office that people can come to for an issue.”
