With May 5 now officially the date for both the
Westminister and local government elections, Sinn Féin have
kick-started their election campaign with the West Belfast MP calling
for an increased mandate.
Speaking to the Andersonstown News, West Belfast MP Gerry
Adams said he welcomed the opportunity to ask the people of the
constituency for their support once again, but stressed that he never
takes votes for granted.
"Not just myself but the entire team of Sinn Féin elected
representatives and activists across West Belfast know that if we do
not put people first, then we do not deserve their support," he
explained.
"This is a community that I am proud to belong to and one that
I want to see continuing to grow and develop away from a past when
no-one else would stand up for us," he continued.
"It is vital that we continue to build on the work of
initiatives such as the Economic Taskforce so that people can have more
opportunities, and I will continue to drive this forward."
Warning that the current political situation should not be
allowed to stagnate, Mr Adams called on republicans to take risks to
move the peace process forward.
"What happened in December and what has happened since, in
the way events have been exploited, have to some degree delayed the
process, so republicans need to be going back on an offensive, need to
be prepared to take risks to push it forward.
"It's not in the interests of the majority of the population
on this island that a political vacuum continues, and the fact is that
republicans have to take the initiative back – you can't prevail if you
stay on the defensive."
Mr Adams acknowledged that some republicans may feel Sinn
Féin's opponents have "ganged up against us and given us a battering",
but argued that "now is not the time to hunker down. This is the time
to be strategic and to be going back at them."
The West Belfast MP stressed that the British government would
have to respect the outcome of the election, saying: "They cannot
lecture us about democracy and ignore the ballot box."
He also appealed to both the Irish and British governments
"not to waste this opportunity" to bring the process forward in the
coming weeks and months.
Ruling out any immediate move by republicans on policing prior to
further moves by the British government, Mr Adams said that the
electorate had endorsed Sinn Féin's stance on the issue.
"The people decided in the last two elections who was right on policing," he said.
"Rather than anyone seeking to shoehorn us or verbalise on
that, they would be far better off using their own influence to get the
British to transfer power on justice and policing."
Although Sinn Féin's relationship with the SDLP and the Irish
government has suffered in recent months, Mr Adams argued that an
agreed position amongst pro-unity parties was desirable, and dismissed
suggestions by the SDLP's Alex Attwood that Sinn Féin's Green Paper on
Irish Unity would not convince unionists to sign up to a united
Ireland.
"The SDLP has come from a post-nationalist position to one
where they have published a paper, and I welcome that. I think this
shows the impact of Sinn Féin campaigning on that issue. But I don't
believe we have all the answers and I don't think we have a copyright
on Irish unity.
"We have argued for a Green Paper and I have persistently called for broad alliances around this issue.
"The more people who are putting up ideas about their concept
of Irish unity, the better. Let's just work at bringing it about and
good luck to anyone who genuinely wants to do that."
Although Sinn Féin will not take their seats at Westminster
if elected, Mr Adams explained that he sees the office of the MP as "a
conduit to be used for a party, as opposed to an opportunity to become
a member of some elite club".
The Sinn Féin MP pointed out that his party has four working
MPs defending seats, and that in West Belfast the party has managed to
secure Task Force support and to achieve a focus on issues within the
constituency.
"Our record is there, but I don't see any worth in taking
seats in a British parliament and neither do the SDLP if you look at
their record of attendance – the worst among all the parties
represented.
"We're contesting all of the other constituencies, and people
will decide what's the best way forward. The whole direction,
particularly for those who want to advocate Irish unity, is the centre
of gravity politically becoming the island of Ireland, so it's far
better to argue for seats in Leinster House."
Mr Adams expressed a hope that at the end of the campaign,
Sinn Féin will emerge with increased political strength, allowing the
party to ensure that, during the negotiations which follow the poll,
the Good Friday Agreement agenda is secured and the peace process is
advanced further.
"The reality is that the more support there is around the
imperative of equality, unity and the Good Friday Agreement, then the
more quickly you will be able to achieve those objectives," he said.
