Mulhern says his role was kept secret because other founders sought power

Mr John Mulhern said his involvement in Century Radio was kept secret because the two other founders, Mr Oliver Barry and Mr James Stafford, wanted a "position of power" in the company.

Century's failure to disclose Mr Mulhern's involvement contravened the rules of the Independent Radio and Television Commission, which awarded the first national commercial radio licence to Century in January 1989.

However, Mr Mulhern told the tribunal yesterday he was not aware of such regulations at the time Century submitted its application. He only became aware of them subsequently.

Mr Stafford made the decision to keep his (Mulhern's) involvement secret, he said. "Mr Stafford was a control-minded person and I was happy to concede that," Mr Mulhern said. The decision to hide his involvement "didn't make any difference to me".

His account conflicts with the evidence given by Mr Stafford, who said it was decided to conceal Mr Mulhern's involvement because, as the son-in-law of the then Taoiseach, Mr Haughey, it would attract negative publicity.

He told Ms Patricia Dillon SC, for the tribunal, that Century had also applied for a local radio licence, in case it was not awarded the national franchise.

Asked why his involvement in the local radio application was not disclosed, Mr Mulhern said this would have been deemed "impertinent". The matter was delicate and you might be better off with a "small bite of a successful cherry rather than looking for two bites of the cherry".

Asked about donations by Century of £5,000 to Fianna Fail and £2,000 to Fine Gael, he said he would never have agreed to such payments. "If you're having duck for dinner, first get the duck. If you're spending money, first earn it," Mr Mulhern said.

Asked if he had ever been asked to approach Mr Haughey on behalf of Century, Mr Mulhern said: "Absolutely not." Ms Dillon said that of the £610,000 Mr Mulhern invested in the company, £80,000 had not been traced. There were difficulties getting cheque copies.