Tánaiste and Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald has declined to comment on reports that Garda Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan’s legal representative questioned the character and motivation of whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe at the O’Higgins commission of investigation.
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said Friday that the claim that Commissioner O’Sullivan accused Sgt McCabe of being motivated by malice could not be left unanswered.
Describing the allegation as “disappointing” and “disturbing”, he said: “I think it would be useful for the Garda Commissioner to clarify the report at the earliest opportunity”.
Asked whether Commissioner O’Sullivan enjoyed her full confidence, a statement issued on Ms Fitzgerald’s behalf said: “There is no question of issues of confidence in the Garda Commissioner arising.”
She said she hoped that “all those affected by the report” of Mr Justice Kevin O’Higgins can now accept he “looked at all the facts fairly and dispassionately and made every effort to do justice to the position of all”.
She would have “no knowledge” of evidence given in private session apart from the evidence included in the final report, nor could she “second guess” work carried out by the commission.
It was “entirely a matter for the Commission, having heard all the evidence, to reach whatever conclusions, and deal with whatever matters it considered appropriate” in its report.
Ms Fitzgerald said he was restricted by Section 11 of the Commission of Investigation Act, 2004, which prohibited the disclosure of evidence given in private at a commission of investigation.
Commissioner O'Sullivan also declined to comment on the reports, published on Friday in The Examiner newspaper.
A statement issued by a Garda spokesperson in reply to queries on the matter from The Irish Times said a person who contravened the Act was "guilty of an offence".
The statement added: “Therefore, the statute as laid out prohibits any further comment.”
On Friday, The Examiner reported the detail of what it said were unpublished documents relating the commission's work.
The newspaper claims the documents showed that when Mr Justice O’Higgins asked Commissioner O’Sullivan’s lawyer whether “you are attacking [SGT MCCABE’S]motivation and attacking his character” counsel for Commissioner O’Sullivan replied “right the way through”.
There is no mention of the exchange in the final report of the commission published this week.
However, The Examiner further quotes Sgt McCabe's counsel Michael McDowell SC objecting to the accusation by garda management that his client was motivated by malice during the commission's private sessions.
“Attacking one of our own members of our force who is in uniform and on oath when in circumstances where in public she [the Garda Commissioner] promoted him to a professional standards unit, and in public she has indicated that she accepts that he was acting in good faith et cetera, et cetera, and in private she sends in a legal team to excoriate him.”
The reference by Mr McDowell relates to Commissioner O’Sullivan asking Sgt McCabe to join a team of gardaí in the professional standards unit, which was auditing penalty points terminations.
