Monday, 8th June, 2015
Cneifiwr calls it a day
I had intended to publish an update this evening to a long-running council saga, which can now wait.
Before going to press I learned of the unfortunate announcement from the Carmarthenshire blogger, Y Cneifiwr, that he is finishing his blog to move on to a new project.
An unashamed card-carrying Plaid Cymru supporter hell-bent on discrediting Labour, Richard Vale’s online pen-name derives from the Welsh for shearer.
Vale, of Newcastle Emlyn, has been a thorn in the side of those who’ve orchestrated and overseen the catalogue of dodgy dealings and shady goings-on in Carmarthenshire County Council since starting his blog in 2011. He’s done so alongside the county’s other council blogger, Jacqui Thompson, who started a couple of years earlier.
As a fellow blogger covering similar issues in this corner of Wales, Cneifiwr’s site was one of only a handful I checked regularly.
With an impressive pace during his blog’s almost exactly four year run, Cneifiwr posted on average over five times per week covering diverse topics.
His articles, which often sparked debate – including those from his nationalist perspective miffed at any move by Carmarthenshire County Council which he felt would weaken the county’s brand and heritage – were entertaining and well informed.
Any Johnny-come-lately or English, foreign or multi-nationalist outfit who wined, dined or otherwise scratched the pot-bellies of Carmarthenshire council’s bigwigs as part of an “investment” plan involving sleight of hand with county assets or cash could expect to be picked apart clinically. If the matter under consideration had cultural significance, especially so.
And thinly veiled press releases churned out by the county council’s busy spin machine following overtures from some do-gooder organisation or another involving the distribution of public money in some “exciting new opportunity” for the benefit of the few and not the many, rightly got his back up.
A memorable case was the evangelical bowling alley – I kid you not – which saw a fortune of taxpayers’ cash ploughed into the costly diversification project of a happy clappy church which also included a cafe.
Brushing up on Corinthians with a milkshake before knocking down all ten pins for a strike was meat and drink to the retiring Cneifiwr, who reserved a special contempt for those in receipt of public cash failing to produce a Welsh language policy or website.
As well as jotting humorously about topical and political matters, Cneifiwr has put his efforts to very good use as a campaigning blogger, uncovering injustices, wrong steps and cover-ups by public bodies, of which in his native Carmarthenshire, like here, there are many to recount.
Cneifiwr blogged mostly on county council matters and can step back – but hopefully not down – in the knowledge that he has enlightened the public on all sorts of issues that may never have seen the light of day otherwise.
If the Kremlin on Towy is as secretive as the Krelmin on Cleddau – and I have every reason to believe it’s actually far worse – then Cneifiwr can be sure that among those who’ve benefited from his blog’s revelations are the councillors themselves, who, no doubt, have first learned about issues from his website when internal channels remain intentionally silent.
That his blog will no longer fill this important purpose, voicing concerns and not being afraid to hold people’s feet to the fire, is another reason why Richard Vale’s retirement is a shame.
That’s in addition to the more selfish shame of losing a first rate outlet who gossiped about municipal characters and their toe-curling shenanigans.
There’ll be some development or other in the future which will compel him to dust down his keyboard and come out of retirement even if it’s on a sporadic basis, I hope.
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I don’t think it’s just a coincidence that Cneifiwr decided to finish his blog just after Plaid Cymru did a deal with the Affiliated Independents in order to lead the council.
Dubious, democracy works best with a strong government and a strong opposition. Sadly in Pembrokeshire the opposition is too fragmented.
If your assertion is true, then surely a Labour orientated blogger will appear out of the ether some time soon. We can only hope.
WE NEED Y CNEIFIWR BACK BLOGGING!
He must be disappointed with the actions of the Plaid Cymru councillors since they shoved aside the Labour lapdogs for them to become the lapdogs of the CEO, officers and executive.
He would not be disloyal to his party to chastise them for the very suspect decisions they seem to be making. They need him to remind them where their loyalty should be and that is in acting at all times in the public interest, not self interest (for whatever reason).
Give it a go Richard, before Plaid Cymru shoots itself in the foot so often that the wheels of its wagon come off completely and their voters rethink where to put their cross.
If they do I hope Sian Caiach’s true independents get a look in and continue to refuse to be corrupted and coerced.
This petition against officer led councils is worth signing https://www.assembly.wales/en/gethome/e-petitions/Pages/petitiondetail.aspx?PetitionID=870
We need you Y Cneifiwr to keep your party on the straight and narrow!
It was suggested at the time – and unfortunately the conclusions are now there to be made – that Cneifiwr’s abdication from the blogosphere was a well-timed ploy so as to avoid an eggy face.
Whether presciently or precautionarily, by discontinuing his popular blog just as his own party – Plaid Cymru – took over the reins from the shambolic Labour/independent regime, Cneifiwr would never have to report on their crooked antics.
And as a distant observer it seems that Plaid Cymru’s coalition premiership with the ‘independents’ has provided almost more shady shenanigans than Labour’s rotten indy pact, who he called out mercilessly – and rightly so.
Take the Plaid Cymru council leader’s dubious planning debacle – it’s enough to have raised the blogging dead from the grave!
Had the former Labour leader (the foot-in-mouth Cllr. Kevin Madge) been similarly embroiled, I can’t imagine the able and determined Cneifiwr maintaining the silent treatment.
Sitting on his hands, thus avoiding scrutiny of those whose political colour he sympathises with, rather takes some of the shine off what was in its heyday an informative blog – he would have called out such cynicism in others and should have been up-front about it himself.
Though, it must be said that in large part toward the end of its run, Y Cneifiwr predominantly appeared to take the form of a Plaid Cymru party-political mouthpiece.
It seems that George Orwell was quite correct with his ‘Animal Farm’.
It can also be claimed that a true democracy can only exist in theory, as once power has been achieved, the selfish human nature takes over.
All we can do is ensure that there are enough safeguards in place to remove the politicians (from the very top to the very bottom) once they become ‘I’ from ‘We’…