Sinn Féin councillor announces his retirement
Sinn Féin councillor Michael Mulligan, pictured with his colleague, Deputy Claire Kerrane.
Ballaghaderreen-based Sinn Féin Cllr Michael Mulligan has announced he is retiring from local politics due to health reasons.
The political stalwart, who has represented the Boyle local electoral area since 2004, described his 20 years in politics as a "great experience".
Cllr Mulligan said up until recent weeks he had intended to contest the local elections.
"I got great satisfaction helping people and I did the best I could. I am sure there were some people let down and I would feel sorry for them," he said. "I did not manage to get any big factories in, but I did a lot of work on the ground and I helped a lot of people."
Cllr Mulligan said he will not be emotional when he attends his last local authority meeting in June, but he will have fond memories of his career.
"I used to love getting the election results coming in and I hope they never do away with the old-fashioned, traditional way by bringing in an automatic or electronic system," he said. "I used to always come in second or third place, it comes back to the work you do on the ground. It was a great experience for me."
