The former Progressive Democrats leader, Mr Des O'Malley sought a political contribution for his party in a personal letter to the current JMSE managing director, Mr Frank Reynolds, the Flood tribunal heard yesterday.
Mr O'Malley's letter was dated September 7th, 1989, and addressed to Mr Reynolds at his home. Mr Reynolds had authorised the payment of £500, as a result of Mr O'Malley's request, from JMSE funds, he told the tribunal: "The letter was personal but the payment wasn't." "Was this the first communication from Des O'Malley or the Progressive Democrats organisation?" asked Mr John Gallagher, SC, counsel for the tribunal.
No, said Mr Reynolds, a circular letter from Mr O'Malley had come some months earlier, addressed to the former company secretary, Mr Gerry Downes, at the time of the 1989 general election. ail, under Charles J. Haughey, ended its era of single-party government and entered coalition for the first time with the PDs - whose own numbers were depleted in the general election that year. Mr Downes had left the company about a year before, said Mr Reynolds. In this letter, Mr Gallagher noted, Mr O'Malley had "acknowledged your generous assistance of the past", which was "deeply appreciated".
Mr Reynolds said he had asked the then "executive chairman, Mr [James] Gogarty" what should be done: "He said we should give them £1,000." A cheque for this amount was written, dated July 18th. It was not obvious from the cheque stub who the payee was. This was because Mr Gogarty had not known whether the recipients wanted it made out to cash or to the PDs. "Was this the first contribution Mr Gogarty had authorised or had made out to a political party?" Mr Gallagher asked. Mr Reynolds could not answer that, he said, but later recalled that Mr Gogarty, under cross-examination, had told the tribunal that "he had never made a political contribution in his life".
Later Mr Reynolds, under cross-examination, was asked by Mr Brian O'Moore SC, counsel for Mr Gogarty, whether he had wanted to make a political contribution to the PDs. "Not particularly," he replied. "Did Mr Gogarty?" "He felt it was the thing to do." There was nothing sinister about either his own or Mr Gogarty's behaviour, he said. Earlier, he described how his colleague and fellow director, Mr Gabriel Grehan, had rung him on the night before Mr Dermot Ahern was due to meet Mr Joseph Murphy jnr in London, prior to the formation of the current Government. He had told Mr Reynolds that he had had a phone call from the PD leader, Ms Mary Harney, about the meeting: "It subsequently transpired that the phone calls were going the other way" - that is, Mr Grehan phoning Ms Harney.
Mr Murphy was later in contact with Mr Grehan, who asked if Ms Harney could phone him. He agreed she could.
Mr Gallagher said that Ms Harney, in her evidence, had said that she was told by Mr Grehan that at some stage between June 11th and June 26th, 1997, he was informed that £30,000 had been paid to Mr Ray Burke TD by JMSE and that this had been matched by another £30,000 from Bovale Developments to secure planning permission or the rezoning of land. Could Mr Reynolds explain?
Mr Grehan had been confused in some of his statements to the tribunal, he responded, but had finally accepted that it was late July 1997 or early August before he knew about the £30,000: "In 1999, people were recollecting that they were told two years previously. The £30,000 figure is on everybody's mind now. People may well have got confused."
Up to that point, the accepted figure was £40,000, he said. Mr Gogarty's allegation was that the figure paid by JMSE was £40,000, it was pointed out, to which the chairman, Mr Justice Flood replied: "I could not be more aware of that." Mr Reynolds's cross-examination by Mr O'Moore continues this morning.