Sinn Féin’s Alex Maskey has said he has been “inundated” with messages of support from the local community after his withdrawal from the South Belfast Westminster race last week.
North Queen Street born Maskey, who stepped aside hours before last Tuesday’s nomination deadline, said the strength of feeling among constituents had convinced him he had made the right choice by giving the SDLP’s Alasdair McDonnell a clear run at the seat.
“The party’s local branch was not too happy to begin with because they had been gearing up for this election for a long time, but we brought them together and eventually they saw it was part of a long-term building project,” he said.
“There has been an incredibly strong reaction from the public, more than I had even anticipated. The strength of feeling I have seen has been humbling.”
The South Belfast MLA said Sinn Féin had only decided to withdraw from the poll at the 11th hour.
“We had been looking at it long and hard, because the issue of unionist unity in South Belfast and Fermanagh-South Tyrone had been on the radar for a number of months, and we had been hearing anger and annoyance about it from all over the local constituency.
“It was raised routinely on every street that it harked back to the old days and we were continually being asked what we were going to do about it. The big risk was damaging our standing in south Belfast but we weighed it up and took the decision, only hours before the deadline.”
He admitted he did not believe the SDLP would reciprocate Sinn Féin’s move by withdrawing its candidate Fergal McKinney in Fermanagh-South Tyrone before the deadline.
“They seem to be so hostile to us that they’ve lost all political perspective. They will have heard the same things on the doorsteps that we did but they refused to even have a meeting with us.
“A lot of people are annoyed by the way they have dealt with us, in a seemingly ungracious manner. There are issues that are more important than individual parties and I believe this is one of them.
“I have heard from a number of my constituents that they won’t vote for Alasdair McDonnell because he has been very politically hostile to our project for years. I would say to him if he wants those votes, he has to work for them. I have given him a clear run, it is up to him not to squander it.”
Critics of Mr Maskey’s move have said it has “sectarianised” the election, a claim he rejects.
“Unionists have been arguing for months about South Belfast and Fermanagh-South Tyrone, so it’s not as if it was a secret agenda. It’s not as if my withdrawal has suddenly made South Belfast an issue.
“I reject any notion of sectarianism from our perspective, although I believe the way unionists have come together is purely sectarian. Their only common agenda is to get rid of nationalists and that is what makes a sectarian headcount. You can’t ignore that and have to challenge it.
“I hope people will understand and appreciate what we are doing in the constituency. I have a great commitment to South Belfast but I advocated taking the initiative because I thought it was the right thing to do. I certainly won’t be standing aside in South Belfast again, because we made the effort this time and it was ignored. I will continue to work very hard for the constituency and I will be going forward in next year’s elections on a solid track record. I’m certainly encouraged by what I have heard so far.”
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