The property developer Owen O’Callaghan told the Mahon Tribunal today that he never heard it mentioned in the early 1990s that lobbyist Frank Dunlop was a “bagman for politicians”.
Mr O'Callaghan told the tribunal how he came to engage Mr Dunlop to lobby for the Quarryvale project in March 1991, in the run-up to a Dublin County Council vote on the matter.
He told Patricia Dillon SC, for the tribunal, that the late Liam Lawlor told him Mr Dunlop was "the one person in town who knew most of the councillors" and could introduce him to them.
He said he first met Mr Dunlop when he and his partner in the Quarryvale venture, Tom Gilmartin, met Mr Lawlor by accident in Dáil Éireann and Mr Lawlor suggested they meet with Mr Dunlop. They went straight to his offices.
However after the meeting Mr Gilmartin said he didn't want to use Mr Dunlop's services. Mr Gilmartin was of the view he could get the required rezoning for the Quarryvale project by himself, Mr O'Callaghan said.
Mr Gilmartin did not say he was against using Mr Dunlop's services because he was a "bagman for politicians" or because of his association with Mr Lawlor, Mr O'Callaghan said. Mr O'Callaghan said he never queried Mr Gilmartin about his opposition to using Mr Dunlop, even though it was an "obvious" question to ask.
He said he could not explain how Mr Gilmartin was later able to say to the Gardaí and to the tribunal that Mr Dunlop had been involved in making "improper or corrupt" to councillors, prior to Mr Dunlop having his "road to Damascus conversion" at the tribunal and admitting making such payments.
Mr O'Callaghan said that two days after his first meeting with Mr Dunlop he phoned him in the morning and "popped in to see him later in the day". It was agreed, he said, that Mr Dunlop would lobby for the Quarryvale project and that Mr O'Callaghan would be able to make use of Mr Dunlop's offices and staff while doing so. There was no mention of Mr Dunlop making political contributions to councillors as part of the lobbying exercise, he said.
He decided not to tell Mr Gilmartin about his decision even though he knew that as soon as he began lobbying councillors, Mr Gilmartin would hear about it through his own contacts on the council.
At the time Mr O'Callaghan's company Riga Ltd had a 40 per cent interest in Barkhill, the vehicle for the Quarryvale project. Mr Gilmartin had another 40 per cent, and AIB had the remaining 20 per cent. In February 1991 the shareholders had agreed that no additions would be made to the "professional team" working on the project without the bank being informed, but the bank was not told by Mr O'Callaghan about Mr Dunlop being engaged.
Mr Dunlop gave three invoices in 1991 to Mr O'Callaghan using a company called Shefran Ltd for an amount totalling £80,000. Mr Gilmartin was not told who Shefran represented.
