Government policy on immigration and international protection created havoc in rural communities and pit them against one another.
That's according to local TD Michael Fitzmaurice, who's been speaking in the Dáil on the issue.
He praised those who legally emigrate to Ireland and said they are necessary and welcome - but took aim at the system that allows illegal immigrants to stay here for years.
Here's what Roscommon/Galway Independent Ireland Deputy Fitzmaurice had to say in full.
"We have two systems in Ireland. We should make it very clear that we value people who have come here through the visa system and who are doing great work throughout the country. They need to be appreciated for everything they are doing. However, the sad reality is that when a renewal is needed, or when an employer wants to bring somebody in through the visa system, it is a nightmare. That is the fact, whether we like it or not."
"Then there is the other system, whereby someone may come in on a plane without a passport. They could be here five, six or seven years before being dealt with. I understand that the Minister has made improvements. I acknowledge that and I have said it openly, but the reality is that while the Minister says applications will be processed or decided upon in 12 weeks, if the applicants go to the courts they will be here for another two, three, four or five years. That is a major problem."
"What has happened in this country, not in the Minister's time but before it, is that many decisions made within the Department saw rural communities pitted against each other. Businesspeople have gone around the country like vultures looking for places, including nursing homes that were closed. We lost nursing homes in this country and they became IPAS centres. Maybe it was not the Minister's Department that was involved at the time, but I am referring to the Department that made the decisions. What has happened has caused havoc in rural communities around the country. Those concerned should hang their heads in shame for what they have done."
"Civil servants in some Department made these decisions without any of us knowing as politicians. We were left looking like fools, not knowing what was going on. Local councillors were left looking like fools because they could not be told what was happening. A liaison person was sent out who would not tell you X, Y or Z, and that was absolutely sickening. I hope the Minister changes this. I realise he is caught now with this European legislation and that if he does not adhere to what we have signed up to, the pact that gives sovereignty away, we can be fined."
"I welcome what the Minister has done over the past six or seven months, but I will say time and again that there are people who have come here from countries not because they were fleeing war or other such things. They are coming in through the North and by other ways and we have no control over it. We do not know who is coming in."
"May I be very clear? If people come here through the visa system, they are very welcome to work. Let no one say they are not. Let people not be putting out, especially in the media, that we are against people working. Nobody is against anyone working. Irish people have opened their houses, businesses and properties to people in this regard, but they will not put up with what is going on at the moment."
