TAOISEACH BERTIE Ahern will accept in evidence to the Mahon tribunal that lodgments made to his building society account in 1994 were sterling, sources have said. Mr Ahern, who is likely to return to the witness box at the tribunal over the coming weeks, is expected to offer an explanation as to how the sterling cash lodgments came about. COLM KEENAand DEAGLÁN de BRÉADÚNreport
He will have to explain the lodgments in the context of his earlier testimony that they arose from his salary. The tribunal website says Mr Ahern is not scheduled to appear before Wednesday, May 21st.
In dramatic evidence in March, Mr Ahern's former secretary Gráinne Carruth told the tribunal she accepted "as a matter of probability" that lodgments totalling £15,500 which she made for Mr Ahern in 1994 were sterling lodgments.
Ms Carruth said she couldn't recall the involvement of sterling but accepted that she must have lodged sterling on the basis of bank records unearthed by the tribunal. Ms Carruth's evidence caused a political storm, but Mr Ahern did not offer a public explanation at the time.
The tribunal has made swift progress in hearing evidence from witnesses concerning the so-called "Quarryvale" module since Mr Ahern's last appearance in February. There are now just 32 more witnesses scheduled to give evidence, according to the website, indicating that the module could be completed well before the summer. The tribunal intends hearing 15 witnesses between now and May 21st.
Two weeks ago, the tribunal dropped from its list a number of solicitors who were scheduled to give evidence . They were to give evidence concerning their roles in matters that transpired following the unexpected death of Mr Ahern's solicitor, Gerry Brennan, in 1997.
Mr Brennan acted for Mr Ahern and for Manchester businessman Micheál Wall in relation to the house Mr Ahern first rented and then bought from Mr Wall.
Mr Wall is still listed as a witness due to give evidence.
In a television interview with RTÉ's Bryan Dobson for last night's The Week in Politicsprogramme, Mr Ahern said the treatment of Ms Carruth was "deeply unfair, I mean I think that was totally unnecessary".
When it was put to him that there would have been no need for Ms Carruth to appear if he had offered to explain the sterling lodgments, Mr Ahern said: "If they had have bothered to ask or tell me the information I would have done that."
In his previous interview with Mr Dobson in September 2006, Mr Ahern said he had received just three payments and these were in the context of family difficulties. Asked if he stood by those comments, he said: "I've read that interview back and I still think it was as accurate an assessment as I could have given."
When it was put to him that there had been further payments, he said: "Well, there wasn't. The one that came up about the sterling was only my own money changed and that's all it was."
He rejected as "totally nonsense" suggestions that he had received up to £450,000. "I've seen figures of 150, 250 [thousand] and I think one opposition politician at some stage said it was a million. You know it's just crazy stuff.
"The figures were the same as when we spoke about them. There's nothing else. The only difference is, that was back in, whenever it was, September '06 and a year-and-a-half later we are still talking about the same things. And I still haven't really been asked about the substantive issue."
Asked again if more payments would be revealed, Mr Ahern said:
"No, no, no, there won't. I mean the only payments that I suppose should come out are the payments that are being paid to run the tribunals. I think that's a far more interesting story than mine.
"The fact I've been dealing with this and I still haven't been asked the question about what the substantive issue was, the tribunals that were set up 11 years ago . . . and that was did I get money from Owen O'Callaghan? Eleven years on and Owen O'Callaghan hasn't been forward as a witness to say I never got money in it. I mean I was unlucky that I got in the middle of the meat in the sandwich between two developers who were sparring off each other over big money."