THE IRISH OBSERVER: Political Corruption Ireland

Saturday, January 30, 2021

Political Corruption Ireland

The insider

In 2005 there was concern that certain corrupt politicians were taking bribes from Property Developers, in return for a Guarantee that The National Children’s Hospital would be built on the site of The Mater Hospital in Berty Ahern’s constituency. I volunteered my services to investigate.

Inspired by abolitionist Frederick Douglass, Daniel O’Connell said of Irish-American slave owners:

"How can the generous, the charitable, the humane and the noble emotions of the Irish heart have become extinct within you?"

NOTE: In 2010 when I infiltrated a money-laundering operation in Dublin, two well known names from The Mahon Tribunal raised their head once again.

In 2005, Dublin City was awash with cash, people like Tom McFeely, a former Sinn Fein/PIRA Hunger-striker, had his pockets bulging with cash as he built such infamous developments as Priory Hall, which would later be deemed unsafe. After McFeely left his £15,000,000 Mansion on Ailesbury Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin, over £200,000 cash was found hidden under the bath.

Tom McFeely former PIRA Hunger-Striker

However, this article is not about Sinn Fein/PIRA Bagman, McFeely, it is about a Berty Ahern, Bagman and his associates.

Due to the volume of money being spent on The Mater Hospital site by Berty Ahern’s Government, which would total £40,000,000 including, €24.5 million for the business services team, €3.2 million for project management and €6.1 million for the integrated design team.

Another €6.1 million in administration and other costs were incurred. This sum included €1.6 million in planning expenses, €878,000 in legal expenses, €200,000 spent on communications and €132,000 in board fees.

This £40,000,000 Convincer, as well as placing Property Developers on The Board of The Mater Hospital, ensured that the Property Developers paid large cash sums to corrupt politicians. Berty Ahern was no stranger to The Mater Hospital, he had some years earlier worked in the Accounts Department of the Mater Hospital, Dublin.

Once the Property Developers were satisfied that Berty Ahern could deliver on his promise of The National Children’s Hospital being built on The Mater Hospital site, the Property Developers bought up all land and property in the vicinity of The Mater Hospital.

This property and land grab by the Property Developers would ensure that the thousands of construction site workers, who would later be replaced by thousands of healthcare workers, would have accommodation, food and drink venues on their door-step, and provide a return of millions of Euros for the Property Developers.

Establishing the facts

I secured work with a key Property Developer, who was also one of Berty Ahern’s key sponsors. I was hired as a Project Manager and a Health and Safety Officer for Castle Contracts. My employer, the owner of Castle Contracts, brought me to O’Neill’s pub on the corner of Dorset Street and Eccles Street.

O’Neills had been a favourite drinking place for members of Sinn Fein/Provisional IRA before it had been closed some years earlier. My Boss and other partners had bought O’Neill’s as part of their property portfolio related to the promised siting of The National Children’s Hospital on The Mater Hospital site, a few yards away.

I specifically asked my Boss why he had bought O’Neills and it was at this point that he boosted about having inside information, as he was actually a close friend of Berty Ahern and he (my Boss) had been appointed as a Director of the Board of The Mater Hospital.

I began a complete refurbishment of O’Neill’s pub; I was working on my own for a good while because in 2005 labour was scarce due to the economic boom. My Boss built up a good relationship with me, as I worked hard and kept within a tight budget. Eventually I got some Polish lads to work with me and the project moved quickly.

As O’Neill’s had previously been a Sinn Fein/PIRA drinking establishment, we were not surprised when thousands of duty-free cigarettes would fall out of carefully constructed hides as we demolished walls and ceilings.

My Boss was a partner with others in the ownership of several properties and businesses, however, he was also a Property Developer, this meant that he was actually charging his partners for the supply of labour and materials. By the end of each project, his partners were heavily indebted and would be at his mercy, as he could call in outstanding debt.

The Corruption

On one occasion I was standing in the front room of one of my Boss’s Hotels, he was shoving a large amount of cash into a standard envelope, however, he could not get enough cash in and so he asked the receptionist to bring him a big A4 envelope, into which he stuffed the cash.

My Boss then asked me to drive him to his house in Drumcondra, the journey took us past Saint Luke’s, which was the name of the Fianna Fail Office in Drumcondra. My Boss told me to pull in to the left-hand side of the road across from Saint Luke’s, he got out of the car and walked over to Saint Luke’s, where he handed the envelope full of cash to a well-known politician.

On another occasion my Boss asked me to drive him from one of his hotels on the north side of Dublin to another one of his hotels on Stephen’s Green. On the way back from Stephens Green my Boss had the radio in the car turned on, and when the news came on, he turned the radio up.

The news reported that Mary Harney was considering moving the site for The National Children’s Hospital to a green field site. Upon hearing Mary Harney’s intentions, my Boss took his mobile phone from his pocket and initially tried to phone Berty Ahern, when he could not reach Berty Ahern, he phoned and got through to Martin Cullen, who was a Minister.

My Boss was very clear with Martin Cullen that there would be repercussions, if The National Children’s Hospital was moved from the promised Mater Hospital site, after the massive investment my Boss and his partners had made.

Before the phone call between my Boss and Martin Cullen had finished Martin Cullen assured my Boss that Harney would not get her way. My Boss then reminded Minister Cullen that he must enjoy a holiday at my Boss’s Hotel and golf resort in Scotland. I have no evidence against Martin Cullen for corruption, I am simply stating that he was on speed-dial for my Boss.

The corruption also included some Directors of The Mater Hospital Board enjoying free Holidays at my Boss’s hotels and having free maintenance carried out at their own private homes by myself and other employees of Castle Contracts.

Conclusion

There is absolutely no question that the political corruption set out above lead to many Millions of Euros being spent on a site that was never going to accommodate The National Children’s Hospital.

The estimated £40,000,000 spend has at this point been written off, however, the real cost of this political corruption has yet to be fully realised.

The years of unnecessary delays have now driven up costs to astronomical levels. A project that was estimated to cost approximately £650,000,000 is now estimated to cost at least £3 Billion.

Had the political corruption not delayed The National Children’s Hospital, it can be said that the hospital could have been built at a much-reduced cost to the Tax Payer and Children could have been prioritised over corruption and self-serving by the few.

Berty Ahern and John O’Donoghue represented grievous excesses, greed and self-serving. The legacy of Berty Ahern and O’Donogue is not as ‘peace-makers’ for Northern Ireland, for they simply used Northern Ireland as a distraction, a slight of hand.

Their true legacy is vulnerable children denied basic fundamental human rights, while O’Donoghue used Tax Payers money to go to the races and enjoy Gondola rides in Venice.

The Mahon Tribunal

On 2 April, 2008, then-Taoiseach Bertie Ahern resigned due to continuing controversy over allegations relating to corrupt payments.

In all, The Mahon Tribunal said that he did not truthfully account for payments of £165,000 made to accounts connected to him.

This included the Manchester dinner with Irish businessmen, where The Mahon Tribunal rejected the assertion that two-thirds of the £24,838 figure mentioned was in punts. The Mahon Tribunal said it was solely a Sterling payment of £25,000, and suggesting that Ahern had not been truthful in his evidence.

Note: The Taoiseach did describe receiving a sum of money from a number of rich businessmen after speaking at a Manchester hotel, and also winning money through gambling on horses.

The Tribunal of Inquiry into Certain Planning Matters and Payments, commonly known as the Mahon Tribunal after the name of its last chairman, was a public inquiry in Ireland established by Dáil Éireann in 1997 to investigate allegations of corrupt payments to politicians regarding political decisions.

It mostly investigated planning permissions and land rezoning issues in the 1990s in the Dublin County Council area. Judge Alan Mahon was the final chair of the tribunal and its other members were Judge Mary Faherty and Judge Gerald Keys. The original Chairman, who was the sole member until just before his retirement, was Judge Feargus Flood, giving rise to the original common name of the Flood Tribunal.

The Mahon Tribunal used investigations to collect evidence and public hearings with witnesses, it investigated allegations made in the media prior to its establishment and allegations subsequently made to the tribunal itself. The tribunal ran from November 1997 to March 2012 and was the longest running and most expensive public inquiry held in the Republic of Ireland, with costs forecast to reach between €250 million and €300 million.

Public hearings concluded in September 2008, and following several delays due to legal challenges, the tribunal began preparing its final report. It published four interim reports, and the final report was published on 22 March, 2012.

Berty Ahern Only Wanted to Talk about Good Friday Agreement

Over six-years after it delivered its report on Bertie Ahern, the Mahon Tribunal is being talked about again since the former Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, walked out of a German TV interview after being questioned over it.

Appearing uncomfortable at the line of questioning following earlier discussions about the Good Friday Agreement, Ahern said he was quite happy that he has cleared his name and that he was very happy with his evidence to the Tribunal.

When pressed, he maintained: “I’ve dealt with that issue and I am not saying any more about that issue.”

Shortly afterwards, he cut the interview short, saying he was there to talk about the Good Friday Agreement and had done so.