The resignation of the Chair of the RTÉ Board and the circumstances surrounding her departure will be a further blow to the morale of staff, Irish Secretary of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) Séamus Dooley has said.
Siún Ní Raghallaigh’s resignation is the latest twist in an ongoing saga which has gravely damaged morale of staff and undermined public confidence, he added.
Mr Dooley called on the Government to “act immediately” to appoint a new Chair to avoid a period of uncertainty.
He said: “In my dealings with the outgoing Chair I found her to be collaborative, sensitive to the concerns of staff and committed to public service.”
Minister for Media Catherine Martin appeared on RTÉ’s Prime Time last night, where she refused to express confidence in Ms Ní Raghallaigh.
Ms Martin said she had sought a meeting with the Chair of the RTÉ Board after being “misinformed” by her on two occasions this week, in regard to the Board’s approval of recent exit packages.
Her comments amounted to a “summary dismissal on air”, Labour leader Ivana Bacik has said.
Speaking on Newstalk this morning, she said: “It was rather shocking to see what amounted to summary dismissal on air by the minister last night.”
“I think the minister now has questions to answer about why she moved in the way she did in this rather peremptory manner, why she didn’t ask questions before?” Deputy Bacik added.
“Is this a rather belated calling for heads and what purpose does this achieve?”
“Will it be possible indeed to find a new Chairperson for the Board?
“Still there is still so much we don’t know and so much lack of clarity.
“We still don’t have full transparency on the exit packages and that is deeply regrettable.
“The minister now does have questions to answer on her handling of this.”
Fine Gael TD Alan Dillon, who sits on the Dáil’s Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee and the Oireachtas Media Committee acknowledged the former Chair’s “efforts and commitment in the difficult circumstances she faced over the past eight months” but he described the latest developments as another self-inflicted blow by the broadcaster.
“It is a regrettable situation that the Chair of the RTÉ board kept the minister, the public and the Oireachtas in the dark.”
Speaking ahead of the resignation of Ms Ní Raghallaigh, Deputy Dillon asked: “Was anyone else present when the RTÉ Chair misled the minister this week? Was the Director General Kevin Bakhurst in the room?”
He called for the immediate publication of the minutes of all meetings of the remuneration committee.
“What else have we not been told? When will we get the truth of what is happening at RTÉ at the most senior levels?” Deputy Dillon added.
