THE PEOPLE of Fermanagh are being urged to come out on the afternoon of November 5 for a peaceful “demonstration of determination” in support of the SWAH and its staff.
Organised by Save Our Acute Services (SOAS), the family-friendly rally kicks off at the Diamond in Enniskillen at 2.30pm, and will be much more than a simple protest.
“There will be guest speakers, music, and free entertainment for all the family including face painting,” said Pauline Corrigan from SOAS.
“There will also be a tractor, truck and vintage car run through the town centre. The Ulster Farmers Mart has made these premises available for all those vehicles taking part where they can assemble at 2pm. This is an opportunity for individuals, farm families and business people to come out and say ‘yes we can save our SWAH’.
Pauline said the event would be a chance for the local community to have their voices heard, stating “having their feet on the ground is their chance to speak.”
“This is a way we can say, feet on the street is what we need, and to let them know we will not be treated as second class citizens,” she said.
Pauline was one of the SOAS members leading the ‘five point plan’ letter writing campaign as part of the Western Trust’s consultation on the withdrawal of emergency general surgery from the SWAH. She spent many hours at Enniskillen Mart and the Fermanagh County Show spreading the SOAS message and gathering signatures.
Describing herself as a ‘farmer’s wife’, Pauline said the farming community was particularly concerned about the removal of emergency surgery from the local hospital, given the danger of workplace accidents. She said the two most common words she heard used while attended events over the summer as part of the SOAS campaign were “fear” and “injustice.”
“Injustice as to why we’re being treated like this. The injustice that no one is speaking up for us,” she said.
Referring to the fact the Trust counted the tens of thousands of signatures gathered by SOAS as only one consultation response, Pauline had a question for our politicians.
“I want to ask them, if 30,369 people voted for you, and the Electoral Commission counted that as one vote, would you take it? If not, why have you let the Western Trust do this?”
Pauline paid tribute to the SOAS group, noting it was made up of a large group of concerned members of the community from diverse backgrounds.
“They are an absolutely fantastic group of people. Save Our Acute Services is our voice,” she said.
“I didn’t know anybody when I got involved. I went to one of the meetings, and I thought, when we get the service reinstated, we deserve to be bowing at their feet.
“That’s how I felt. I went away from that meeting thinking we have got educated people who are giving up all of their time to fight for us. Not just them, but for us.
“I thought I can’t be a hypocrite, you can’t leave it to everybody else.”
To keep up to date on plans for the November 5 demo, visit Save Our Acute Services on Facebook.
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