Madam, - After reading Des Peelo's birthday tribute to former Taoiseach Charles J Haughey (Opinion & Analysis, September 16th) I feel somewhat bemused at the many glowing accolades Peelo has given his friend.
Mr Haughey is credited with transforming the economy in the late 1980s and he certainly had the capacity to be the greatest Taoiseach in the history of this State. However, the revelations about his financial dealings and corruption are factors that Mr Peelo failed to discuss.
At this stage, it would be wrong for the media to disparage the political failures of Charlie Haughey, yet I think it is equally wrong to write about him as if he were above suspicion.
Before retirement, Charlie Haughey had acquired a 171-acre island off the south-west coast, a private yacht and a 10-bedroom Georgian mansion. Other costly indulgences included hand-made shirts from Paris and a mistress in Dublin. Anyone with simple maths would realize that the former Taoiseach was enjoying a somewhat extravagant lifestyle and certainly living beyond his means.
At the Moriarty tribunal it was revealed that Mr Haughey received more than £8 million over an 18-year period from various benefactors and businessmen. One payment alone of £1.3 million came from the entrepreneur Ben Dunne. He was severely ridiculed when he was found out to have spent large sums of Fianna Fáil party money on Charvet shirts and expensive dinners in a top Dublin restaurant, while preaching belt-tightening and implementing budget cuts.
While giving evidence at the tribunal Mr Haughey faced criminal charges for obstructing the work of the tribunal. These are only some of the scandals that he has been involved in.
At this stage Mr Haughey does deserve a peaceful life free from tribunals and interrogation, yet ordinary people deserve to read a fair and honest tribute to a man who is far from innocent and far from being the great figure that Des Peelo portrays. - Yours, etc,
HUGH COUGHLAN, Clonakilty, Co Cork.
Madam, - What a load of unctuous, sycophantic waffle by Des Peelo. What Charles Haughey will be remembered for is the cavalier manner in which he ran this country (into the ground) during the 1980s, when employment was at an all-time high and the economy in a shambles. This did not deter Haughey from enjoying his costly, flamboyant, philandering lifestyle at the expense of the dwindling State coffers. - Yours, etc,
LAURENCE O'BRIEN, Victoria Cross, Cork.
Madam, - After the nauseating Haughey tribute in Friday's edition may I be permitted to pay tribute to a member of your staff who truly deserves such plaudits. Kevin Myers's Irishman's Diary is a breath of fresh air in this PR-driven journalism culture and I commend the man for expressing often widely held but rarely said opinions.
To borrow from Des Peelo, "he entered journalism to do good and he is succeeding". - Yours, etc,
DAVID McARDLE, Cedarmount Road, Mount Merrion, Co Dublin.