Esat rival ‘using inquiry as a stalking horse’
Businessman and head of the Esat consortium, Denis O’Brien — whose bid for the second phone licence was successful — yesterday raised questions over what he claimed were close ties between representatives of Esat’s main rival in the application, Persona, and the tribunal’s legal team.
Giving evidence at the Moriarty Tribunal in Dublin Castle yesterday, Mr O’Brien said it appeared that Gerald Moloney, solicitor to the Persona consortium, had been making his own inquiries in Ireland, England and Belgium which were designed to collect information damaging to him.
He also claimed such information was passed on by Persona representatives to the tribunal’s legal team. Mr O’Brien also expressed concern at the potential conflict of interest which arose from the fact that tribunal barrister, Jerry Healy SC, had represented Persona during the competition for the mobile phone licence.
“Mr Moloney has clearly involved himself in conducting a parallel inquiry and providing material generated through these dubious inquiries to Mr Healy and the tribunal legal team,” said Mr O’Brien.
He said the tribunal had provided a waiver to allow the European Commission give information to Mr Moloney, while Persona had also given a similar waiver to the tribunal about Mr Healy.
“I believe the tribunal is determined to make findings against me which are not in any way justified on the evidence adduced in public hearings,” Mr O’Brien said.
He said Mr Healy’s role represented “one of the more extraordinary conflicts of interest to ever have arisen in a tribunal”.
Mr O’Brien said the Moriarty Tribunal ought to have sought a ruling on Mr Healy’s double roles from the Professional Practices Committee of the Bar Council.
“The issue is simple. Persona want to sue the State for an absolute fortune,” said Mr O’Brien. However, he angrily stressed that he would not take on the role of “fall guy” for the inquiry.
Mr O’Brien claimed Mr Moloney went to extraordinary lengths and expense, by his own admission, to coax former owners of Doncaster Rovers football club to co-operate with the tribunal.
Mr O’Brien criticised The Irish Times and its public affairs correspondent, Colm Keena, who wrote the article suggesting that former Fine Gael minister Michael Lowry might have had an interest in his acquisition of Doncaster Rovers in 1998.
The article was based on a letter by solicitor Christopher Vaughan to Mr Lowry in 1998 which suggested the Tipperary North TD had some role in Doncaster.
Mr O’Brien said Mr Vaughan had subsequently told the tribunal that he was mistaken in this view.
He said despite the “overwhelming” amount of material supporting the position that Mr Lowry had no role in Doncaster, the tribunal’s legal team put the worst possible “spin” on circumstances.
Such selective presentation of material demonstrated that the tribunal had consistently displayed objective bias against him, Mr O’Brien said.
He said the tribunal legal team was only interested in publicising information with negative findings against him, “everything else is ignored or deliberately concealed”.
Mr O’Brien said his decision to keep his involvement in the purchase of Doncaster Rovers confidential by using an Isle of Man-based company to buy the club was taken solely for commercial reasons and was normal business practice.
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