WATERFORD NOT 'SOFT TOUCH' - GARDAI

Gardai in Waterford have denied claims by residents and a local councillor
that the city is a "soft touch" for drugs barons and that illegal drugs are
widely available in city housing estates.

Mr John Halligan, of the Workers' Party, claims drugs are being supplied to
the city by major dealers from Cork and Dublin who know that gardai do not
have the resources to tackle the problem.

Gardai claim Mr Halligan, a member of Waterford City Council, is engaged in
publicity-seeking and that their drugs detection record is among the best
in the State.

A report in last week's Waterford News & Star quoted residents in two
housing estates as saying drugs were openly on sale from some houses and,
although names and addresses had been supplied to gardai, nobody had been
arrested.

Yesterday, residents of one of the estates cited, in the city centre, told
The Irish Times they had not come across open sales of drugs in their area.
Some of them expressed annoyance that the image of the estate might suffer
through bad publicity. However, others questioned about the reports of drug
dealing said they did not want to discuss the matter.

Mr Halligan claims the problem exists in every estate in the city. "It has
reached epidemic proportions. I am not exaggerating and I do not want to
put fear into people but it would be ludicrous for anyone to suggest that
we do not have a serious drugs problem."

He said residents in the two estates mentioned in the Waterford News & Star
had been intimidated since the story appeared. "People have been told `we
know it was you who gave the story and we'll deal with you when the time
comes', that kind of thing. We've also had people sitting outside houses in
cars and looking in people's windows. People are scared."

Mr Halligan claims local gardai, with a full-time drugs unit of five,
cannot cope with the problem. This is strongly denied by Supt Michael
McGarry, who said gardai were proactive and successful in dealing with the
drugs issue.

There was no justification, he said, for a claim that girls as young as 14
were buying drugs in the city. "That's not happening. We have never
received reports of anything like that."

Last year 42 people had been prosecuted for supplying drugs in Waterford
city, 157 had been charged with possession and 26 had been dealt with
through the juvenile diversion scheme.

While the full-time drugs unit comprised a detective sergeant and four
gardai, other officers were also involved in anti-drugs policing.
Plain-clothes officers were frequently brought in from other areas to work
in the city.

Last year gardai had invited every member of the Licensed Vintners'
Association from Waterford to a meeting in the Tower Hotel for a briefing
on how to deal with the drugs problem. Members of the Garda national drugs
unit came from Dublin to advise them on what to look out for and how to
respond.

Supt McGarry said that as a result of the claims made in last week's
newspaper story, a garda had called to every house in the Military Barracks
estate and no resident had made a complaint.

Mr Halligan, he said, had never approached the gardai about the concerns he
was raising in public. He also questioned why attention always focused on
the Garda and not the many other agencies also involved in dealing with the
drugs issue.

When gardai were involved it meant that something had already broken down
in society. "I'm very confident that gardai in Waterford are doing a
magnificent job on this issue."

Mr Halligan said it was no surprise that people did not make a complaint to
the garda who had called to their homes after the newspaper story appeared.
They were simply afraid of the "ruthless criminals" who were dealing in
drugs in their areas.

Supt McGarry said he did not accept the intimidation argument. Complaints
to the Garda were dealt with in the strictest confidence and people could
telephone the Garda confidential line at 1800 666111 or Crimebusters at
1800 250025.

Labour councillor Mr Pat Hayes, the deputy mayor of Waterford, said there
was no doubt that illegal drugs such as cannabis and ecstasy were on sale
throughout the city and some people felt intimidated. Waterford's problem,
however, was no more or no less than that of other urban centres in the
region. "Waterford is still a good city to live in and a safe city to live
in," he said.