Sunday, September 07, 2008

The Sunday Cyril: How Two-Faced Can Rowen Get?


Clearly we at LOL believe there must have been something wrong with the vetting procedure of the Liberal Party which chose the larger-than-life Cyril Smith to be a by-election candidate and MP. You know giving his hilarious slap schtick and tickle on the asses and ball sacks of the young men of the town, his er incompetence in the Treasury of a local Labour Party branch before being pushed or jumped out, not to mention his general illiberality on capital punishment and the like.



But they did pick him. And he did win. And the people of Rochdale, or enough of them, apparently loved or feared him enough to let him keep winning. Even though he was a Class A chump when it came to the shenanigans of the local carcinogenic capitalists Turner Brothers Asbestos / Turner and Newall who made the area around their Spodden Valley death trap No Country for Old Men.



We reported this before - in a post on this theme which unusually got no comments - but here's what Sir Cyril's protege Paul Rowen MP had to say very recently indeed at the launch of the marvellously titled non-fiction tome "Defending the Indefensible" as reported in Rochdale Online:

"(Dr) Geoff (Tweedale)’s book and his research together with the ground breaking documentary by Yorkshire Television released 28 years ago reminds us of the deceit and deception practiced that hid the effects of exposure to asbestos."

(Rowen's own author familiarity, old pals see!?)

But can there be any getting away from the facts that Sir Cyril Smith, the ball-grabbing spanker of Emma Street, and the man who first got Rowen involved in politics as a fresh-faced young "canny lad" of seventeen was party to that deception?

That's the man Paul Rowen spoke of in his maiden speech in the House of Commons, as reported by the BBC:

"I owe him a lot. He is the reason that I got involved in politics in 1972 when, as a 17-year-old, I took part in his famous by-election. This year, almost approaching the age of 77, he came out of retirement and fought for me. He has been a fighter all his life. The town owes him much."

Indeed. His fight for the right to get cancer going forward should obviously be represented by a larger than life statue of the man in Drake Street, right near Rowen's office (and Hennighan's sleeping quarters when he is too pissed etc to get back to Stockport, or latterly even Heywood) and crafted exclusively in the wonderful magical materials that provided the jewel in Rochdale's industrial crown.

By the time Sir Cyril was making his paeans to Corporate responsibility in the House in 1981 and 1983 young Paul would have been 26 and 28. Quite old enough I'd have thought to stay up late and watch documentaries about Rochdale on the goggle box?

Here's Paul Rowen MP once again. This time responding to Rochdale Online on the spot of bother in which his mentor currently finds himself:

“Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Whatever the then known dangers of asbestos, Sir Cyril was faced with the possible loss of thousands of jobs. No MP worth their salt would sit back and let the factory just shut down. Cyril worked hard to ensure that the people of Rochdale were protected as much as possible.

Rowen went on with full on disingenuity, nay lying both shemelessly and shamefully:

"Labour and Conservative MPs at the time agreed with the line that Cyril was taking. The more appropriate question might be why the report in the New Statesman isn't also mentioning these MPs.

Perhaps Mr Rowen that would be because you are lying through your yellow teeth and that Labour MPs DID NOT agree with the line Cyril was taking. Why would they? they knew the Spodden valley works were a disgusting death trap? I'm not going to speak up for the Tories at this juncture. But even they probably shouldn't be tarred with the same brush as wreckless Cyril. Finally Rowen tries to salvage something:

"I will continue to work with groups like the Save Spodden Valley Campaign Team to ensure the safe future of the T & N Site. It’s a shame that this has been used as a political football to try and smear Sir Cyril, this issue should be non-political."

"Political football"? "Smear Sir Cyril"? "Geoff's book"? "Groundbreaking documentary"? How two-faced can a man get? Even by Lib Dem standards this is going some. Why would anyone need hindsight when speaking the year after the documentary appeared? Because the corporation told him they were wrong perhaps? Perhaps they weren't giving him the full story? Who ever would have thought it? Or perhaps Cyril was just being "responsible"?

Here is a first ten-minute extract from that famous documentary:



At this point I would like to respond formally to me old china Dave Hennighan on the marvellously cack-handed way he has directed the defence of Sir Cyril and his current parliamentary boss Paul Rowen. It is almost as though he is deliberately playing right into the hands of those who wish to hold Sir Cyril to account for the terrible things he has put his name to in the past. Perhaps Dodgy Dave is a double agent?

There'll be more on this before long, I'll be bound.

6 comments:

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Anonymous said...

I recall there could be more insight into the psyche of Cyril the vain bully in his autobiography (sic) Big Cyril (written by a wily old Daily Mirror who I won't shame by now naming). As "The big Gob from Rochdale" Smith was a great source of gossip and scandal for journos in Westminster. It seems the quid pro quo was some protection for himself and his past dirty deeds.

Cyril (sic) recalls his first visit to the asbestos factory as an MP. His first reported words to the fauning directors was not a rebuke about health & safety. Rather it was a lament that Turners had missed out on his young talent- he had applied for a job at T&N but had been rejected.

Is this the sort of frustration and insecurity that manifests itself as a domineering character both in town politics and when administering a special kind of discipline on young vulnerable males in hostels late at night?

Smith used and abused people.A social and sexual bully wrapped up withing a rolly-polly joke of frame.

His(sic)autobiography was shameful. He (sic) rewrote history surrounding many aspects of the Thorpe affair. Not only did he betray his party leader when in post as Chief Whip during a Lib Lab pact, Cyril profited from exposing some of the lurid details for his own personal profit for book sales and after dinner speeches at Rotary clubs and cruise liners.

A nasty, shameful, deeply flawed character and certainly no gentleman or statesman. He has been on a 50 year ego trip and in his wake has left some lives and good people shattered. An oft quoted phrase is that he did many good things for his home town of Rochdale. Like what?

The recent revelations about his defence asbestos and his attack on its victims are shocking, but his lack of any principles of decency or morality are no real surprise to many that have known him over the years.

Chris Paul said...

Rowen and Hennighan have been passed Cyril's baton as well as carrying a torch for the old bully. Politically natch. That'll be (a) having no politics and (b) bullying people into supporting them.

Anonymous said...

The last week must have cost poor Paul a small fortune in long distance telephone calls from Down Under to Emma Street and the Hennagan Zone in the Outer Limits of Rochdale (Heywood).

Will these fire-fighting expenses be properly accounted for? Constituency or party business?

Anonymous said...

wot no accounts?

Grubby, hard to remove stains? Thats the trouble with too much spin cycle. Not enough time to dedicate on the money laundering. Don't worry, it will all come out in the wash.

Anonymous said...

Dave a double agent?

No.

Split personality perhaps.

Tired and emotional definately.

No doubt he intends to go on, anon, anon, anon...

But will his party paymasters foot the bill for his mouth?