A local councillor has taken a swipe at Cork County Council and said they ‘need to get their house in order’.
Cllr Frank O’Flynn was speaking after it was again confirmed to him that delays in installing CCTV cameras in Mitchelstown was because no data controller was in place, a role he says is down to the council to appoint.
O’Flynn said it was ‘absolutely disgraceful’ that two and a half years after signing a contract to install the cameras, Cork County Council have done nothing.
“It’s not good enough. In fact it’s absolutely disgraceful. Parents want it and businesses want it. That’s what I’m hearing on the doorsteps. I’m calling on Cork County Council to get their house in order and take the lead. The people of Mitchelstown are waiting far too long, this is a very very big issue. The cameras have proven a great deterrent to crime in other towns.”
The €28,000 contract to install the cameras aimed at reducing crime in Mitchelstown, was signed by Fermoy Municipal District chairman Cllr O’Flynn at the Courthouse, Mitchelstown in October 2017.
Addressing the gathering at the time, Cllr O’Flynn said he was delighted as chairman to be rolling out the scheme, stating that the CCTV system in Fermoy had been a tremendous success. However, over two years on, nothing has materialised.
“The three biggest issues in Mitchelstown are poor broadband coverage, lack of housing and no CCTV. I want the system up and running as a matter of priority. We need it in Fermoy, Mitchelstown and Charleville first and then we can role it out in other towns. We have the funding in place, we have the contractor in place, everything is in place except a data controller.
The council have said that they’ll come back in August or September with further news and I’ll hold them to that,” concluded O’Flynn.
