PJ MARA: Former governement press secretary to be laid to rest beside late wife
Warm tributes were paid yesterday to Mr Mara, who died aged 73 in the Beacon Hospital in south Dublin, where he had been ill for more than seven months.
Former taoiseach Bertie Ahern led tributes to Mr Mara, who died about 1am surrounded by his family.
Mr Mara, who was most famous for his central role in former taoiseach Charles J Haughey’s controversial time as leader of the country, went on be Mr Ahern’s director of elections in 1997, 2002,and 2007.
He was made a household name by his portrayal on the sketch show on RTÉ radio. Mr Haughey resigned in 1992 and PJ Mara went into the private sector shortly afterwards, where his skills were in demand and clients included Tony O’Reilly, Tony Ryan, and Denis O’Brien.
A larger than life character who played a central role in Fianna Fáil for more than three decades, Mr Mara was Charles Haughey’s press officer and confidant in the 1980s and Bertie Ahern’s director of elections for each of the three-in-a-row victories between 1997 and 2007.
Mr Ahern said Mr Mara “was a really loyal and good friend” to him.
“I have been close to him since the early 1970s since I joined Fianna Fáil,” he said. “I knew him from growing up in north Dublin and we all knew each other. PJ was a wonderful person. He was hugely clever and smart. He could handle any situation. The most tense battles in Leinster House, PJ would be at the heart of it. He was never one to dodge a fight as some people do in politics.
“But he was always a bit of fun when the rocks and bottles were flying in Leinster House. Some of the schemes he would come up to get out of the mess were brilliant. There was nobody better to be spending time with. I travelled the length and breadth of the country with him in the 1970s and he was always wonderful company.”
Mr Mara himself faced controversy in 2002 when the Flood Tribunal found he had failed to co-operate as he had not disclosed an offshore account he had held in the Isle of Man.
In more recent times, he was a director of Mr O’Brien’s Digicel company.
Mr O’Brien said: “PJ Mara was an amazing friend, colleague, and intellect who made an indelible impression on everybody he worked with. He joined the Digicel board in 2003 and made a vast contribution to our strategic direction and growth.
“He was an astute adviser and a tremendous and insightful ambassador. We will miss him dearly and our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”
Requiem Mass for Mr Mara is to take place today at 4pm at St Mary’s Church, Haddington Rd, Dublin. His remains will then be brought for burial tomorrow at 3pm to Mount Cross Cemetery, Kinvara, Co Galway.
Eamon Dunphy paid tribute to his fellow Drumcondra native.
“He was always a distinguished figure. Even as a kid, he always had a presence about him,” he said.
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