Dublin Airport (DUB/EIDW) has torn Irish Journalist and failed politician Gemma O’Doherty apart on Social Media after she falsely claimed the airport was operating “business as usual” during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
In a post on social media site, Twitter, O’Doherty said: “While you’re being subjected to house arrest by an unelected government, here’s a list of flights that will land in the next 24 hours in [SIC] Dublin Airport where it’s business as usual: no testing, no quarantine. Yet more proof of the farce that is #LockdownIreland #COVID-19”
In response, Dublin Airport hit back stating 6 facts about the airport debunking her claim. The facts were:
- We had fewer than 900 arriving & departing passengers yesterday. On a normal Easter Mon we’d have more that 100,000 pax. That’s not business as usual.
- We’re open because Irish Govt policy is that we’re open as an essential business to allow for the operation of vital cargo flights, such as medical supplies, and the repatriation of Irish citizens.
- Many passenger flights transport cargo in their belly holds.
- As we’ve said before, Ireland’s travel & health policies in relation to #COVID19 are decided by the State, based on expert health advice from @hpscireland/@hselive. HSE isn’t screening, as it says entry screening doesn’t work & isn’t recommended by @WHO or by @ECDC_EU.
- HSE staff based at the airport have informed all arriving passengers for several weeks that they need to restrict their movements for 14 days. The Irish Govt’s general movement restrictions also apply i.e. people need to stay at home.
- At all times since the outbreak of this public health crisis @DublinAirport has followed the health & travel guidelines that have been set out by the Irish State. Like other airports throughout the world, we adhere to policies set by our respective national governments.
The airport went on to say that “One of the few businesses that seem to operating as usual, is your business of peddling untruths.”
A former staff writer for the Irish Independent, O’Doherty has been labelled a conspiracy theorist and was banned from YouTube for breaching the site’s rules on Hate Speech in 2019.
She tried to run for the Irish Presidency in 2018 but failed to gain the nominations and also failed to win a seat on in the European Parliamentary elections in 2019.