WITH just days to go until the Fermanagh public goes to the polls, the six candidates vying to become the constituency’s next MP have met with one a health campaign group fighting for the return of emergency surgery at the South West Acute Hospital (SWAH).
In the build-up to the UK General Election, representatives from the Save Our Acute Services (SOAS) group met with the Fermanagh and South Tyrone MP candidates to urge them to tackle the local health crisis.
“SOAS has met with all of the candidates in the upcoming election on 4th July,” a spokesperson for the hard-working campaign group told the ‘Herald.
“The meetings were very productive and provided us with a valuable opportunity to update the candidates on the evidence amassed by our campaign so far.”
They added, “We did impress on all of the candidates that the core focus of the SOAS campaign remains getting an unequivocal commitment from the health bodies for the return of full-time emergency consultant surgeons to SWAH.”
BBC Newsline recently stopped off in Enniskillen to do a profile on the Fermangah South Tyrone constiuence, with a focus on how the ever-worsening healthcare crisis in Fermanagh was high on the agenda for the candidates.
However, the broadcast was changed at the last minute as another issue ended up dominating the debate.
During the live programme which was broadcast from Enniskillen Castle, Sinn Féin’s Pat Cullen came under intense scrutiny for failing to condemn IRA attacks.
The Sinn Féin candidate was met with frustration from Unionists across the county, with UUP candidate Diana Armstrong saying she was “not convinced” by Ms Cullen’s views on the IRA.
Retired teacher Toni Johnson, a member of the ‘Save Our Acute Services’ group, also called on all the MP candidates for Fermanagh and South Tyrone to remain focused on health care and to keep it top of the agenda.
“The situation at SWAH requires action from those appointed and we in Fermanagh require a promise that this will be a priority,” she said.
Fermanagh journalist Denzil McDaniel recently told ‘The Detail’ that the majority of people in Fermanagh are more concerned about healthcare, over any other contentious issues.
“Interestingly, when I asked a group of Protestant people if they would vote for Pat Cullen if she could guarantee that she would save our hospital, the answer was a unanimous yes,” he wrote.
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