Bertie Ahern’s legacy - A lot done, but a lot left undone

THE announcement was as emotional as its timing was unexpected but even that great emotion and surprise were not enough to dispel an atmosphere heavy with inevitability.

When, yesterday morning, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern stood on the steps of Government Buildings and announced that he would resign on May 6, he had accepted what had become the unavoidable conclusion to his political career.

If you admire and support Mr Ahern, he fell on his sword because he was putting the good of the party and the country first — and party and country always come in that order in the Fianna Fáil psyche.