A PROPER send off is an expression of love here in Northern Ireland. Under normal circumstances, everyone deserves such a send off. But we know that we are not living through normal circumstances.
The Deputy First Minister and former Health Minister Michelle O'Neill has been front and centre in telling us that circumstances are not normal and setting out the scale and scope of this unprecedented public health crisis.
The vast majority of people listened to the message, understood it and complied with restrictions on daily life including on funerals.
Senior Sinn Féin figures, including Michelle O'Neill flouted the regulations last week. It was a very public act and it has given rise to much hurt and anger.
For that, Sinn Féin and Michelle O’Neill are accountable to the public and those who have been bereaved and now feel betrayed.
However, in a political sense the deputy first minister is accountable to no one.
The absence of accountability stems from the lack of an independent process to investigate alleged breaches of the Ministerial Code of Conduct.
The Green Party has called for that independent process to be established since as far back as 2015.
The New Decade New Approach deal made provision for a panel of commissioners to investigate alleged breaches of the ministerial code. However, the commissioners were due to be appointed by the Executive Office and therefore couldn't be described as independent.
At any rate, there has been no progress on the creation of the panel. No progress, no accountability, no new approach evident.
So, when a breach of ministerial code is alleged, we have no means by which to investigate the matter in an independent, impartial way. Rather, typically we see an executive level spat played out in public with damage to public trust and confidence in politics as a result.
If our executive is committed to accountability, transparency and effective governance, they must quickly move to create a fully independent process to investigate breaches of the ministerial code.
Brexit is on the horizon, the fall out from this pandemic is only emerging and climate breakdown remains unaddressed.
If we are to tackle the challenges of our time we need proper oversight processes in place so that our politics is not beset by continual controversy and crisis.
