“I don’t think the issue should even be discussed at this stage.”
Bertie Ahern, the former leader of the Fianna Fáil party and Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, has refused to rule out a future Presidential run.
With the next Irish Presidential election coming in just two years’ time, speculation has been mounting about who could possibly run to succeed Michael D. Higgins in 2025.
Speaking on The Pat Kenny Show on Friday morning, the controversial political figure discussed the possibility of returning to the political world following rejoining the Fianna Fáil party this month, after a nearly ten-year exile.
When grilled by Kenny as to whether his return to the party was in advance of a Presidential campaign, Ahern replied “The presidency is for another day, my job is if and when the president asks for advice is that we give it, usually on controversial legislation”.
Ahern, who was Ireland’s second longest-serving Taoiseach for a timespan that stretched almost 11 years, has elected to rejoin the party he once led on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.
Discussing his rationale behind a return to political life, Ahern stated “The only thing that is important to me now is I passionately want to see the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement. I’m not remotely worried about the other things”.
After delivering his thoughts on the Good Friday Agreement, the 71-year-old was once again quizzed as to whether he had his eyes set on the Áras an Uachtaráin, to which he said “I assure you this, there should be no connection between me rejoining and what might happen in the future. At this stage, I have no thoughts about the next presidential election”.
However, after an artful display on how to best avoid answering a question, Ahern did leave a soundbite of sorts for the listeners when stating “I don’t think the issue should even be discussed at this stage. When it does come up somewhere in the middle of 2025, everybody who has an interest will have to express it and whether I have or not then, God knows”.
Having offered such vague answers with plenty of room to manoeuvre, no one can be certain as to Ahern’s intentions. Although, at the very least, the timing of his return to the public eye appears to be a calculated one.
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