By Steve Cull
There is no greater lie than a statistic.
Anyone who has ever written a report knows that you can manipulate facts and figures to make whatever point you want. Inclusion or omission of certain data can serve whatever devious ends you can dream up. That said, there is a time and place for looking at the numbers and seeing what arises. Let’s see what a quick analysis of the make-up of the National Management Committee since 2004 throws up.
A transparency questionnaire …
1. In Scouting Ireland to date how many National Officers have been members of a fellowship patrol during their term of office?
2. How many employees in Scouting Ireland and its subsidiaries are in a fellowship patrol?
3. How many NMC members since 2004 have been a member of a fellowship patrol whilst in office?
4. Do some fellowship patrols count among their membership both employees and volunteer directors of Scouting Ireland?
5. Would this scenario be likely to present any challenges in terms of optics for stakeholders inside (and outside) Scouting Ireland?
6. What implications would it have for transparency in Scouting Ireland, (a registered charity funded by member subscriptions and government grants)?
7. Is there any reason to believe that conflicts of interest may arise from time to time and what measures might be in place to manage those conflicts of interest?
And what exactly IS a fellowship patrol?
Christy Mc Cann is a former Provincial Commissioner of the North East Province and has recently concluded a successful period as International Commissioner. He has been an active Scouter all his life, working at every level in the Group and beyond. In 2008, he ran Jamboree 2008, a significant event to celebrate Scouting’s centenary and one of the largest events of its kind in Ireland.
He is a candidate for the role of Chief Scout and theirishscouter caught up with him recently to ask him some questions…
The statement, issued by Scouting Ireland, following the recent exclusive interview on this website, was in some ways the perfect encapsulation of all that is wrong with national scouting presently.
Continue reading A box ticking exercise?
Kiernan Gildea, former Chief Commissioner of Youth Programme, former Provincial Commissioner of Dublin and recent candidate for the office of Chief Scout, spoke exclusively to theirishscouter earlier this summer.
Continue reading Kiernan Gildea. Exclusive Interview
Pat O Connor is a former Programme Commissioner for Scouts, a former member of the National Management Committee and is currently Camp Chief at Mount Mellary Scout Centre in Waterford. He has been an active scouter in St Paul’s in Waterford and in the South Eastern Province for many years. He is a candidate for the position of Chief Scout in September’s election for the post, to be held at an extraordinary meeting of the association’s National Council.
Theirishscouter spoke with him recently….
Francis Minogue is a former National Treasurer, a former Provincial Commissioner and an active Scouter in his group in Roscrea, County Tipperary. He recently signaled his intention to seek election to the role of International Commissioner.
The Irish Scouter spoke with him this week.
Over the coming weeks, TheIrishScouter will be running a short series of articles in connection with the forthcoming elections in Scouting Ireland for the role of International Commissioner and the critically important election of a new Chief Scout, the latter arising from an extraordinary and unprecedented set of circumstances at the April meeting of Scouting Ireland’s National Council.
Feel free to share your opinions too – this will be an important election (taking place at an extraordinary meeting of Scouting Ireland’s National Council in September 2015).
Whilst much celebration is undoubtedly taking place in the US in light of the BSA (Boy Scouts of America)’s recent decision to extend their equality policy to adult members, The Irish Times article on the topic last week threw up a very interesting point, probably overlooked by many but of significant relevance to Scouting in Ireland.
Scouting has become a follower of societal trends, rather than a setter of them.
The Irish Times this morning carries a report from the United States that the Boy Scouts of America has signaled that it will now welcome gay adults as members into its organization of 3 million plus members across the country.
It is a welcome development, coming as it does on top of an earlier acceptance that young people under the age of 18 who are gay, can join.
theirishscouter 