Dail Sketch/Michael O'Regan: Taoiseach Bertie Ahern found himself swimming against the political tide yesterday, as he defended his self-confessed pet project, the National Aquatic Centre.
Mr Ahern's glass of water had been replenished on the Taoiseach's bench as Enda Kenny drew a damning analogy between the problems at the centre and those facing the Government.
"The debacle that is now the National Aquatic Centre truly is an apt metaphor for the FF-PD Government: massive costs to the public, a so-called state-of-the-art attraction that is all splash, with fake waves, the roof blown off and leaking like a sieve," said Mr Kenny.
What of Michael McDowell's reference in May 2002 to the project being "Ceaucescu-like"? The analogy might not be so far-fetched as people imagined, said Mr Kenny. "After all, the infamous Romanian tyrant left behind him a battery of extravagant, egotistical, sub-standard, unfinished monuments and buildings, the price for which his people will continue to pay for many years to come."
By contrast, in March 2003, Mr Ahern had remarked that a "visionary concept has been brought to a magnificent fruition." The facility was leaking water at the rate of five million litres per month, and a consultant's report had found that the original roof structure was substandard, said Mr Kenny.
Mr Ahern said that everyone should allow the courts to deal with the issue, "and not be fooled by red herrings, because that is what yesterday's furore in the media is about".
This provoked laughter from the Opposition benches, but Mr Ahern continued to wade his way through choppy political waters.
He wished, he said, to confirm that it was his pet project, the motivation being the provision of a pool for the country and specifically to provide a suitable location for hosting the Special Olympics.
Mr Kenny challenged Mr Ahern to reveal who was responsible for the roof being blown. "The wind," replied Mr Ahern. "I am hugely powerful, but I did not organise that."
The FG leader noted that he had been in Dublin's Mansion House on the previous night, and observed the Ahern family's coat of arms, "Per ardua surgo, I rise through difficulties".The Taoiseach, he added, was coming near to escaping from the House for his summer holidays, and he wanted to know how he intended dealing with the difficulties at the centre. "Does he plan to wade, swim or dive through these difficulties?"
Mr Ahern said the Government was not happy with the performance of the company involved, but added that the centre was bringing endless enjoyment to adults and children, day in, day out, as well as providing a top-class facility for athletes.
Meanwhile, the authorities yesterday advised that the ducks in the pond in the grounds of Leinster House should not be fed bread or worms. It will, no doubt, be heeded, but Mr Ahern's plea to the Opposition to stop feeding him "red herrings" will be ignored until the House rises on Friday.