No ordinary Joe
He’s one of the last great orators in Irish politics. But there’s more to Joe Higgins TD than firebrand socialism. In this candid interview, the man once described as a ‘nitwit’ by an enraged Bertie Ahern talks about his childhood, the role of the church in his life and explains why the Celtic Tiger has let Ireland down
Olaf Tyaransen, 12 Oct 2006
Within a few months, Higgins’ allegations were proven right – and GAMA were forced to pay the Turkish workers all of their back wages (one of whom described it as “like winning the lottery”). To their collective shame, Ahern and Fianna Fáil were hugely exposed as multinational lackeys. Conor Lenihan stupidly shouting “Stick with the kebabs!” at Higgins, and then being forced to apologise just a couple of hours later, hardly helped their caring ‘party of the people’ image.
The whole sorry, scary and scandalous story can be seen in a recently released DVD documentary entitled The GAMA Strike. While the production values aren’t Top of the Range, and there’s a lot of SP propaganda, the documentary is eminently watchable and utterly compelling. A snapshot of the true cynical face of Celtic Tiger Ireland, it’s a film that every Irish voter should watch, whatever their politics. In years to come, it’ll undoubtedly be an important historical document.
Although this interview takes place in Leinster House on September 11th, your Hot Press reporter didn’t feel the need to raise the American question with him. Two years back, I sat beside Higgins at a televised press conference for the ‘When Bush Came To Shove’ campaign. I remember he arrived in about 100 seconds before the conference was due to begin, furiously scribbled out three pages of notes, seemingly off the top of his head, and then delivered a devastatingly effective speech. As soon as he’d finished, he rushed out the door to make another speech elsewhere.
Even today, he seems harassed, busy and stressed. His suit is rumpled, his tie is loosened and his shirt is opened up to reveal an overwashed vest that’s as graying as his hair. He’s carrying an overstuffed case and a precariously balanced tower of files and papers. Shaking hands becomes comical, almost more effort than it’s worth.
He asks would I mind giving him a chance to eat, before we get started and between loud slurps of unsweetened tea, he wolfs down a pair of plasticy-looking cheese sandwiches in about 60 seconds flat.
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