UDA chief’s fears over ‘dissident’ loyalist groups
A leading South Belfast loyalist has said he fears a ‘Real UDA’ splinter group will be formed following the paramilitary group’s announcement that it has decommissioned all its weapons.
Speaking exclusively to this paper just days after the UDA’s historic decommissioning, Jackie McDonald spoke of his concerns that loyalist breakaway factions could become a “mirror image” of dissident Republican groups.
McDonald – widely considered to be the the north’s top loyalist – said the decision to announce the decommissioning of the remainder of the UDA’s weapons came last Wednesday because “it was the right time to do it and the right thing to do”.
However the loyalist boss revealed he feared the emergence of loyalist “super gangs” which he described as a mixture of paramilitaries formerly trained by the UDA and fearless criminals which he said could prove “very dangerous”.
With the dissident republican threat at an all-time high, Jackie said the only way to ensure the UDA didn’t play into dissidents’ hands was to take all the weaponry out of the equation.
“Dissident republicans are trying to create a climate where they become the defenders of the people but what I’m saying to loyalists is that there are genuine nationalists, Catholics and republicans who don’t want this any more than we do so don’t take the bait.
“For the first time ever, loyalist paramilitaries are in a position where they don’t have guns so it will be interesting to see how the communities react to the fact that the only people left with guns are dissident republicans.”
Jackie said the attempted dissident bomb attack on the Policing Board could have derailed the UDA’s decommissioning process so the best solution was to put the guns and explosives beyond reach.
And with the weaponry beyond use, Jackie said the focus would be on regenerating and rejuvenating rundown communities like Sandy Row.
“I have young men coming to me desperate to go out and kill a few Catholics because they see nothing better for them,” he said.
“I’m telling them we’re going to a better place but how can I convince them when they look around and see nothing?
“Working-class loyalist communities will no longer stand for being used at a election time, we have identified burning priorities in health, education and housing and it’s time for unionist politicians to close the class gap and deliver for us.”
