I’m ready to talk, Adams tells Ahern

SINN FÉIN president Gerry Adams yesterday called for clear-the-air talks with Bertie Ahern after the Taoiseach accused Mr Adams of behaving childishly in their row over the Northern Bank robbery.

The West Belfast MP said Mr Ahern’s attacks were electorally motivated.

But he added: “I am prepared to sit down with the Taoiseach today, tomorrow, at any time, to try and sort these matters out.

“It is important that when we get to that point, that genuine dialogue should be conducted in an atmosphere which makes success possible. That is one of the reasons why we are so vigorous in defending ourselves from these accusations.”

December’s £26.5 million heist at the Northern Bank’s headquarters in Belfast plunged talks to restore power-sharing at Stormont into crisis.

The IRA has consistently denied claims by Northern Ireland Chief Constable Hugh Orde, gardaí and the British and Irish Governments that it is responsible.

But Sinn Féin has also been infuriated by Mr Ahern’s claim the party leadership must have known the robbery was being planned during last year’s negotiations on ending paramilitary activity. The row was re-ignited on Thursday when a report from the Independent Monitoring Commission on the bank heist claimed senior Sinn Féin members were among the IRA leaders who sanctioned the operation and three other robberies.

Mr Adams challenged Mr Ahern to have him arrested if the Government really believed he knew the robbery was being planned. He said the Taoiseach should “put up or shut up”.

Mr Ahern responded yesterday that he remained convinced the IRA was behind the pre-Christmas raid and called on Mr Adams to stop acting like a child.

“Thankfully, the laws of this country don’t allow me to arrest anybody so I’m not going out to arrest Gerry Adams,” he said.

“The one thing we don’t do in our kind of politics is go around picking up people off the streets. Other political people do that, but we don’t.”

Mr Ahern also said Sinn Féin could no longer deny the IRA was involved in ongoing criminality and punishment beatings.

“Letting on that the cigarettes weren’t taken or that the drink wasn’t taken or the petrol wasn’t taken or the punishment beatings didn’t happen, sure that’s kind of childish stuff,” he told Kildare’s KFM radio. “All that we were stating was facts and now the facts have been collaborated by the Garda, by the British Government, by the PSNI, by everybody.

“What we need to do is put our energy into implementing the Good Friday Agreement for the people.

“I’m here and ready so, I mean, we should stop being children.”

Mr Adams said yesterday Mr Ahern had avoided responding to the challenge to have him arrested. He also noted in a newspaper interview in Belfast on Thursday, that Mr Orde had said he had no idea if Sinn Féin was involved.

“The Taoiseach should stop making these malicious and untrue allegations,” he said.

“However, I fear his intention is to continue with this because the concentrated assault on Sinn Féin, the spurious and untrue accusation that this party sanctioned robberies, is about criminalising our party and our electorate.”