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New Buncrana councillor takes his
seat
15.10.08
Ballyliffin native
co-opted to town authority
by Damian Dowds, Inishowen
Independent
MICKEY Grant has been unanimously co-opted to
Buncrana Town Council, filling the seat held by the
late Cllr Philip Diggin who died in April. He will
serve on the council as an Independent member, and
says he will decide at a later date on whether to
contest next year’s local elections.
Cllr Grant was proposed for the seat by Independent
Councillor Nicholas Crossan and seconded by Fine
Gael’s Paul Bradley at last week’s monthly meeting.
Liam Blaney, a Donegal county councillor and former
colleague of Cllr Diggin in Independent Fianna Fáil,
also attended the meeting. |
Cllr Grant is a native
of Ballyliffin and has lived in Buncrana for 15
years. He is married to Josie, née O’Kane and the
couple have one daughter. A carpenter by trade, he
is a former Fruit of the Loom employee and served as
a SIPTU shop steward in the factory. Cllr Grant is
well known in GAA and soccer circles, and is a
former captain of Ballyliffin Golf Club.
Speaking as Gaeilge ar dtús, Cllr Grant thanked
Paola Diggin for nominating him for the position and
vowed to continue with Philip Diggin’s work. “I’ll
carry out all aspects of Philip’s work, and will try
to bring |
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his ideals and standards to
the job.”
“Serving on the Town Council was integral to
Philip’s life. He was passionate about the
betterment of Buncrana and worked tirelessly and
with great energy for the town over the past 20
years. He was always approachable, open and
straightforward and always maintained his easy,
light-hearted, thoughtful and level-headed manner.
He will be a hard act to follow, but there is no
better role model than Philip Diggin.” Cllr Grant
was warmly welcomed to the Council by the sitting
members. Cllr Grant was also appointed to fill the
late Cllr Diggin’s seat on the Donegal Vocational
Education Committee. |
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