Sligo municipal councillors want to know why Sligo Town has not been chosen among those where a poll will take place next May or whether or not a mayor should be directly elected by the people.
Such a vote will take place in Cork, Galway, Waterford and Limerick.
Sligo Municipal District councillors this week voiced their disappointment that Sligo is not among the cities in which the poll will take place, particularly as Sligo resident Martin Forde has already collected 1,100 signatures for a petition calling for a directly elected mayor.
Following a proposal by Fianna Fail Councillor Tom MacSharry at this week’s meeting of councillors from the Sligo Municipal District, the councillors are now to write to Local Government Ministers Eoghan Murphy and John Paul Phelan calling for Sligo to be included in the May poll.
One councillor, Independent Socialist Declan Bree, said he had no confidence in Fine Gael ever introducing legislation for directly mayors, seeing as it and Labour had abolished the borough council.
And Sinn Fein Councillor Chris MacManus reflected the views of some councillors when he said he was not interested in having a mayor for ceremonial reasons but rather one with strong executive powers.
