'ANTI-DRUG' CAMPAIGN IS UNWANTED, SAY SLIGO GARDAI

Gardai in Sligo have said that the people who put up posters in the
town naming four local men as alleged drug dealers are doing nothing
to help the fight against drugs. They have appealed to the public for
information on those responsible.

The printed posters were erected early yesterday morning. Under a
heading "Warning - beware of the following drug dealers" the names and
addresses of four men were listed on the posters. None of the four has
been charged with a drugs offence. Insp Michael Barrett said gardai
did not yet have any information about who was involved, and he
appealed for information. He said the posters were a "public menace".
"They are not assisting the gardai in any way by doing what they are
doing. If people feel they have any information on anything relating
to drug trafficking, the gardai would welcome that information," Insp
Barrett said.

There is no history of any anti drugs groups organising in Sligo, as
has happened in larger cities. "We never had any vigilantes and that
is something we don't want to see coming in here. The gardai are quite
capable of dealing with the problem," Insp Barrett added.

There have been a number of drug seizures in the Sligo area in recent
weeks, one of which was the largest find in the region when cannabis
and ecstasy tablets valued at pounds 500,000 were uncovered in a flat
in Tubbercurry. In July, gardai made the first seizure of cocaine in
Sligo.

Sligo Alderman Mr Sean MacManus, a member of Sinn Fein, said the party
had "absolutely nothing" to do with the posters. But he said he could
empathise with those who resorted to such tactics because of the "lack
of action against drug dealers in the town"

"Day after day people are coming to Sinn Fein complaining about the
epidemic of drugs in Sligo. Cocaine had been widely available for the
past 18 months and we now believe that there are a small number of
heroin users in the town," he said.

Mr MacManus said that not all of those making these complaints were
Sinn Fein supporters, and he claimed gardai had tried to play down the
problem for a number of years. Staff of Sligo Corporation yesterday
removed the posters, which were of A4 size and could be printed on a
standard computer.