Sligo IFA has submitted a proposal to IFA HQ requesting a rotating Connacht Chairman every two years in the region as a resolution to the current deadlock in the region.
No candidate has met the criteria for the position and it seems no one is willing to pull out of the race and give their county signature to another.
Sligo’s Rural Development Chairman and Connacht Chair nomination Eddie Davitt said that Sligo is the only county that has come up with a resolution.
“We’re proposing that every two years a chairman is elected. The five counties are put into a hat and we draw them. Whichever comes out first they host if for the first two years and so on.
“It’s in order for fairness. In 25 years there’s three small counties in Connacht that have never had it [the Connacht position].
“Let’s call a spade a spade. It’s been dominated and controlled by Galway.”
We’re demanding this resolution at national level – every county in Connacht will have their say at Council over 10 years.
Davitt says that grassroots members are very disillusioned and that the share of Connacht needs to be spread out more fairly.
“This rule change [to allow a chairman every two years from a Connacht county] would resolve this.
“This can bring fairness and equality that the grassroots members will feel.”
Meeting of Connacht IFA Chair candidates
However, it is understood that a meeting was held recently between four of the Connacht candidates, their County Chairmen and two senior IFA National Council representatives.
It is believed that the meeting went on for a number of hours, but no resolution was found to the impasse.
A source said that a lot of things were said and the air was cleared but that those at the meeting left it feeling ‘more disjointed’ than when they went in.