Who will welcome Menlo Mayor?

Now an update on the rivalry between the two Fine Gael City Councillors, Frank Fahy and Pádraig Conneely, who are fishing in the same pond for votes following the constituency boundary redraw.

The one-upmanship ratcheted up a gear this week as the duo’s egos went into overdrive. 

Mayor Conneely was in Menlo Park, California recently. The mayor of the US city that takes its name and whose founding fathers are from Menlo, Galway, has agreed to a return visit.

The Menlo mayor confirmed it in a letter sent to City Hall.

The Bould Frank Fahy got wind of it – who is leaking in City Hall, we wonder? – hot-tailed it to the Galway Bay FM newsroom to inform the citizens of Galway over the airwaves that he’d be accompanying the Menlo Mayor on a tour of Menlo Galway.

Choking on his cornflakes, Conneely immediately got on the blower to the Keith Finnegan Show to put his upstart party colleague in his place, confirming that he as mayor would be escorting his counterpart around and, in fact, already had the itinerary organised.

It was cringe inducing radio – and has to be heard to be believed. It didn’t end there though.

For a couple of days later, who was going round Menlo on a leaflet drop?

The Bould Conneely with glossy pamphlets (or a “souvenir for the people of Menlo” as he describes it) that make him appear like a statesman with the Stars and Stripes and the Tricolour flanking a photo of him signing the Friendship Agreement between the two cities on a visit to California recently.

And yes, you’ve guessed it, one was dropped through Frankeen’s letterbox!

Oh the local election campaign is well and truly underway.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Sentinel.