Aralt

There are journalists and political commentators who treat politics like one big chess game; talk about it in the abstract as if it's detached from the realities of daily life. It's insulting to ordinary people who are struggling. The reality of politics in the North deprives Derry of modern healthcare facilities. That means people who desperately need care don't get it. That means people wait in a tiny cramped A&E with one toilet that should've been upgraded long ago. That means people go to old health centres that are no longer fit for purpose because the government has delayed plans for a modern facility at Fort George. Ultimately, people die earlier in Derry because Stormont has failed them on so many levels. The reality of sectarian politics is that the city I live in is still waiting for a proper university 60 years after it was described as the biggest issue facing the city; the denial of a university here was a catalyst for the civil rights movement and one of the sparks that ignited the Troubles. Yet there are parties around the Executive who have happily thrown roadblocks in the way of Magee expansion and oppose expansion to this day. To block uni expansion is to rob people here, young and older, of job opportunities — to deny them the chance to build a life and career in their hometown. The corollary between universities and job opportunities is obvious — a fact politicians at Stormont are well aware of. Ergo, the desire to deny Derry a full-sized uni has been ever-present at Stormont. The reality of politics here is that no Irish Medium or Catholic Maintained school in Derry was approved for a new-build in at least 14 years (as far back as records go). The reality of politics here is that two traditionally majority Protestant secondary schools in Derry received millions more funding than eight majority Catholic secondary schools as far back as records go. The reality of politics here is that Derry was told to wait, yet again, as a c.£370m Ulster University campus was built in Belfast city centre, allowing the city to swallow 84% of the North's student population. Rapacious greed unmatched by any other city in Ireland or Britain. Greed which is linked to the collapse in higher education we're witnessing right now via hundreds of job cuts. The reality of politics here is that £110m+ was found for new Further Education colleges in Coleraine and Ballymena (and tens of millions spent elsewhere) as the same department told us there was no money available to invest in Magee expansion. I could add to the list bringing in infrastructure, arts funding and so on. But I think you get the picture. Politics is life — it impacts on the lives of your family and mines. Every. Single. Day. Bitter men & women in Stormont dictate whether Derry should get its fair share of funding. And no republican or nationalist party representing Derry has been smart enough to deliver the truly catalytic projects our city needs. They settle for a wee community centre here and a couple of million for an airport there; a local politics mindset, rather than big picture politics. Worse still, some Foyle politicians turn a blind eye to neglect of Derry and even praise the likes of Invest NI who continue to fail the city. Condemnation of ongoing sectarian policies has to be dragged out of them at times. Party before the public they serve.