Mayo View: We need our politicians to be the serious people they claim to be

Prior to the last month's general election both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael published manifestos promising what they were going to do if re-elected.

They have been, so it's time they started getting on with it.

Yet day by day we are treated to drivel about why the new administration is unlikely to be in place for several weeks because of the need for protracted negotiations.

It's a farce in the extreme, an indulgence by egotistical politicians at the taxpayers' expense.

No other entity in this country intent on conducting serious business would be allowed to get away with such needless procrastination.

The problems that our politicians were so urgent to address before the election have not gone away.

There is not a genuine reason why a stable government could not have been put in place within a week of the result being declared.

Yet the public is expected to believe that the process is such a complex and time-consuming one that nothing can be left to chance.

It's regrettable and probably underlines why so many people throughout the nation choose not to exercise their franchise.

They don't see the Oireachtas as an organisation with a business-like approach to its work and sufficiently upholding the values of efficiency, meeting deadlines and honouring commitments with consistency and control.

When was the last time we've seen a minister being totally in command of their brief and endearing themselves with the public because of their imagination, enterprise and drive? A long time ago, I suspect.

More and more will continue to snub the election process if the same old and stale approach is accepted as the norm.

We need our politicians to show they are the serious people they claim to be.

So let's get this country up and running again in January by the relaunch of government after its extended break with a show of intent, energy and focus.