Irish Nationwide's chief executive has reacted to negative media comment and insists the Flood tribunal will not unearth any "skeletons" at the building society.

Mr Michael Fingleton, addressing members at the building society's annual meeting in Dublin yesterday, said Irish Nationwide had come in for unwarranted negative publicity in recent months and vehemently rejected suggestions in some sections of the media that the society was in trouble. "You have to understand that things ain't what they seem to be," he told the fewer than 100 members at the meeting.

When asked by a shareholder why the society had been hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons of late, Mr Fingleton said he was baffled.

"I don't know. Maybe we are doing so well that some people think we shouldn't be here," he said. There were negative views being circulated about this society, he added, "but we get on with our business and I can forecast that, even if we never change our status, we will not be in trouble".

Another shareholder referred to a dismissal case taken by an employee last year, during the course of which a judge threatened Mr Fingleton with a spell in jail for contempt. The shareholder asked why the building society had allowed the disagreement to end up in court. Mr Fingleton said it had taken advice and no fault could be levelled at the society in its handling of the matter.

Another shareholder referred to Mr Fingleton's appearance before the Flood tribunal last week, asking him whether there were skeletons lurking around the society.

"There are no skeletons here. Absolutely none. Don't believe everything you read in the papers," he said.

Chairman Mr Peter O'Connor said the society had fully co-operated with all tribunals of inquiry and would continue to do so. Mr Fingleton appears again at the Flood tribunal on May 9th and Mr O'Connor said it was precluded from commenting further.

Meanwhile, Mr O'Connor told members that the society had shelved a review of its future ownership options, blaming the downturn in the value of financial shares last year.

Mr O'Connor said the review - which could have backed a flotation of the society on the stock market - was well advanced but the society had been forced to pause and reconsider its position in the light of the decline in the value of financial stocks.

"Suffice to say that everything is on hold at the moment, but we will continue to monitor the situation on an ongoing basis," he said.

Mr Fingleton said the society wanted to have the opportunity, if it decided to go public, to do so without any complications. He expressed great reluctance to pay heavy fees to advisers to arrange a flotation. "I would like to avoid paying out fees to every Tom, Dick or Harry. The last building society to convert paid £15 million [€19 million] to advisers and that would break my heart," he told the meeting. The society had made representations to the Department of Finance and the Central Bank about converting to a mutual bank as an interim step, said Mr Fingleton.