Dear SDLP,
You may consider it presumptuous, inappropriate or even downright unmannerly to suggest that you still have the wrong leader.
With no disrespect to the contestants in this weekend's leadership election, the person you really need as party leader is Fianna Fáil's Micheál Martin.
An odd choice, you may say, but if we compare the performance of Fianna Fáil and the SDLP in recent years, you might appreciate the basis for the opinion.
In 1998 the SDLP won 24 Assembly seats. By 2011 this had fallen to 14 seats, representing a loss of 80,000 votes. A recent internal report suggests that in next May's election the party may win only 9 seats. That would render the SDLP electorally obsolete.
Contrast that with Fianna Fail's performance. In 2011, following Ireland's economic collapse, it lost 57 of its 77 seats in the biggest electoral defeat in the state's history.
Fianna Fáil should now be dead (certainly a lot deader than the SDLP). However, recent opinion polls indicate that the party could win 40 seats in next spring's election - double what it has now. It may even be in government with Fine Gael.
There is little chance of the SDLP doubling its number of seats any time soon. So what explains this contrasting performance? There are two possible answers.
One is that it is unfair to compare the circumstances leading to the electoral collapse of the two parties and the challenges they subsequently faced. The other answer lies in political and organisational leadership.
The first view has merit in that the SDLP had their electoral clothes stolen, while Fianna Fáil lost theirs by gambling on a property bubble. But no matter how you finish up in your political underwear, the challenge is the same. You need new clothes.
So while the SDLP is still complaining about theft, Fianna Fáil is showing off its new suit. To an extent, it is easier for Fianna Fáil because it is in opposition.
The SDLP could also be in opposition, but it chose to join what is arguably the most discredited administration in Irish constitutional history. Stormont's tarnished reputation has rubbed off on the party, which has generally performed meekly in an increasingly lethargic Assembly.
This week the party sat patiently at Stormont waiting for political crumbs from Sinn Féin's top table at the talks. This suggests that the SDLP has become a classic victim of a political form of Stockholm Syndrome, whereby a captive becomes psychologically dependent on the captor. In electoral terms, it has become Sinn Féin-lite.
So most differences between its performance and Fianna Fáil's are of its own making.
That leads us to seek an answer in the area of leadership, a concept which goes beyond the leader's personality. It includes the ability of all senior members to collectively create a unique political space through internal leadership of the party and external leadership by the party.
The most comprehensive critique of Stormont's failings has come, not from the SDLP, but from Fianna Fáil. Last week Micheál Martin pointed out that the Stormont parties have allowed core public trust to be undermined.
He illustrated how northern rates of poverty and child poverty in particular have continued to worsen. Almost half the children in west Belfast live in poverty, he said, while Stormont's austerity is damaging public services.
So how can a party like the SDLP lose 80,000 votes in those circumstances? There is more to it than having your clothes stolen.
Sinn Féin is also trying to steal Fianna Fáil's clothes, by claiming to be the one holy, apostolic republican party. Martin has beaten them off and he is ahead in the polls. That's leadership, whatever you think of his politics.
You will, of course, point out that all this is very well in theory, but that in practice Mr Martin cannot lead the SDLP because he is outside the party. Well, the answer is simple then, isn't it? Merge with Fianna Fáil to create an all-Ireland party and allow him to lead you back to becoming a major political force in the north.
Alternatively, you may wish to stick with someone who has an excellent leadership record, amazing electoral success and an international profile. But sadly for you he does not have your party's best interests at heart.
You see, by following Sinn Féin's policies and strategies so closely, your current leader is effectively Gerry Adams. That's why it would appear reasonable to suggest that you still have the wrong leader and why a switch to Micheál Martin might be a better choice.
