Letters: Empower the people through citizen  assemblies

Monday, January 9 marked three years since the New Decade New Approach agreement was reached. Remember New Decade New Approach and all the hope that it ushered in for this decade? Three years later and the agreement lies in tatters and policy pledges fluttering in the wind.

Today, the DUP is preventing the function of government at a time when our health service teeters on the brink of collapse. People are being priced out of existence by corporate greed and a dependence on fossil fuels which are destroying our planet. The last time, it was Sinn Fein that prevented government for three years.

This year also marks 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement was signed, another time of hope and expectation for something better - sustainable politics and a peace process that improved the day-to-day lives of the people that had endured so much during the conflict.

The negotiations that brought about the Good Friday Agreement were inclusive in nature. Minority voices had seats at the table and made critical contributions. The role played by the Women's Coalition, for example, was immense, helping to knock old heads together and speaking on the part of people who had rarely had their voices heard before.

However, since then our politics has become exclusionary. There has been a consolidation of power through various agreements and arrangements and today we sit with three main power blocks in Sinn Fein, the DUP and Alliance. The problem is that these three main parties clearly can't do business together. Our system of government was intended to be pluralist, not exclusionary and mirroring the Westminster system.

Yet, the British government continue to press on with behind-closed-doors round tables and negotiations. This is rinse and repeat Northern Ireland politics. A deal cooked up by vested interests which promises to be different but inevitably leads to crises and collapse again.

A return to inclusive politics is needed now more than ever. That's why I am calling for citizen assemblies, dealing with issues that matter most to people such as climate breakdown, the future of health care, and sustainable competent government.

With Northern Ireland having no government over 40 per cent of the time since 1998, it is clear that repeating the same process with the same parties won’t work. Instead, empower the people to provide the solutions.

Mal O'Hara, Leader, Green Party NI