Bertie Ahern’s racist comeback in Dublin Central – Blood on his hands
Bertie Ahern is making a racist comeback.
The ex-taoiseach and Fianna Fáil leader is helping to create a new far-right cover which will be used to justify fresh atrocities at accommodation centres, random attacks on immigrants, racist violence and murder.
There is blood on Bertie’s hands. Perhaps Fianna Fáil will expel Ahern again.
Ahern resigned from FF in 2012, days before he was due to be expelled. The state’s Mahon Tribunal ruled he was financially corrupt. This was Ahern’s stellar achievement : the dimmest dogs 🐶 in Irish ☘️ streets know the Fianna Fáil party has been corrupt since its foundation in 1926! The former leader rejoined the Soldiers of Destiny in 2023.
Getting expelled from an organization more financially dodgy than the average Swiss Bank is an Olympian feat.
Bertie continues to cause no end of trouble for his party – so, perhaps, he will jump into the Independent Ireland party, where he can wallow in racist gutters alongside other ex-colleagues such as the dangerous and eccentric Cork North-Central TD Ken O’Flynn.
Link :
The results of the May 22 Dublin Central and Galway West bye-elections will tell us something about the current state of popular opinion.
A number of very good strong statements have been issued by anti-racist organisations and many left-wing organisations – Some of them are are reproduced here.
This excellent Cedar Lounge Revolution post sets the scene :
A number of “ForAll” anti-racist organisations are active in many parts of Dublin.
Here is an excellent leaflet produced specially for the Dublin Central bye-election :
Labour Leader Ivana Bacik says Ahern’s comments as “offensive” “irresponsible” and “dangerous and inflammatory”
Labour leader Ivana Bacik described Ahern’s comments as not just “offensive and irresponsible” but “dangerous and inflammatory”.
She asked if the Tánaiste would “call him out” and ask him to apologise.
Bacik said “it was “profoundly wrong to use language which could direct public anger towards migrants and minorities”.
She added in the Galway West byelection “a torrent of despicable online abuse has been directed at our Labour candidate Cllr Helen Ogbu”. She called on Facebook owner Meta “to take responsibility for the hate speech they are facilitating.”
She said “former taoiseach Ahern remains a member of the Council of State. He’s more than just a private person making ignorant remarks on the door.”
She added it was ironic that “Bertie Ahern has the temerity to fuel rhetoric that blames immigrants for systemic problems in Ireland.
“The man whose policy brought about the worst financial crash in the history of the State. And since that, crash migrants have played a pivotal role in rebuilding our economy.” Irish Times, May 14 2026
Africa Solidarity Centre Ireland
The Africa Solidarity Centre Ireland declared :
Africa Solidarity Centre Ireland Condemns Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern Over “Vile and Dangerous” Comments on Africans, Muslims and Immigration
The Africa Solidarity Centre Ireland (ASCI) strongly condemns the vile, reckless, and deeply divisive comments made by former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in a video circulating on social media, in which he stated that “the ones I worry about are the Africans,” objected to people coming from “the Congo,” and raised concerns about the next generation of Muslims in Ireland.
The full statement is here :
Bertie Ahern’s comments about migrants are vile – Social Democrat bye-election candidate Daniel Ennis
Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern’s vile comments about migrants have no place in Dublin Central, one of the most diverse constituencies in the country, according to Social Democrats Dublin Central by-election candidate Daniel Ennis.
Councillor Ennis said:
“The last few years have seen a rise in hate and exclusion towards those who seek refuge, asylum or simply a better life in Ireland. Mr Ahern’s vile rhetoric only serves to further the agenda of those who seek to divide us by spreading fear throughout our communities.
“I entered politics to fight against this hatred and discrimination, which I saw first-hand through my work in East Wall. I watched as innocent children and their families were targeted by the local ‘Says No’ protests, which sought only to dehumanise a group of vulnerable people due to the colour of their skin, the sound of their voice and any of their other perceived differences.
Link :
Bertie Ahern’s comments abourt migrants are vile – Daniel Ennis, Social Democrats
People Before Profit Denounce “”Disgusting racism”
The issue was raised in the Dáil when People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy accused Ahern of “disgusting racism”.
Irish Times report May 13 2026
He claimed the comments showed a “very blatant agenda” to “scapegoat immigrants, divide ordinary people” so that “nobody blames Ahern, Fianna Fáil and the landlords and developers you have allowed to profit from the housing crisis”.
Reiterating his earlier comments, the Taoiseach said: “I don’t approve of any commentary that would in any way undermine any particular ethnicity or any person with a particular ethnic background.
“And my understanding is that Mr Ahern, former taoiseach, has resiled from those comments and he says he has no issue with people who come through our asylum process.”
Murphy said: “What people say when they don’t think they’re being recorded is actually more valuable than what they say when they do know they’re being recorded.
“And it suggests a dirty game used on doors” to divide ordinary people, “to have them not blaming the people you represent” but to “blame the people from Congo or wherever else”, Murphy said.
Weak and ambiguous Sinn Féin statement
Compare all the above with the Sinn Féin response spoken by the party leader Mary-Lou McDonald
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald…… said she had heard the comments.
“How Fianna Fáil is this? To have a position publicly and then to be saying different things privately. I think that’s really unhelpful,” she said. McDonald said there needed to be “thoughtful management of issues around every aspect of migration” and criticised the Government for its approach.
“If Fianna Fáil want to be speaking out of all sides of their mouth, that’s kind of for them,” she said.
Asked if she would condemn the comments, as others had, she said: “That’s wrong, it’s wrong to identify or to zero in on any one group of people in that way..” Irish Times May 13 2026
The Sinn Féin party has circulated inflammatory material in the Dublin Central constituency – it speaks for itself :
The above leaflet, circulated by Sinn Féin in support of the party’s Dublin Central by-election candidate Janice Boylan, panders to racists who protest outside buildings which accommodate immigrants. Throwing people out of IPAS centres, or preventing such buildings being used in the first place, in the real world means throwing human beings on to the streets and canal banks.
This choice of words is disgusting “faster decisions and enforcement of deportations”.
Bertie Ahern has racist form – the 27th Amendment inserted in the Irish Constitution in June 2004
Bertie Ahern has form : his Fianna Fáil / Progressive Democrat coalition, introduced the 27th Amendment to the Irish constitution in June 2004. Voters were asked to limit automatic Irish citizenship to children of Irish citizens.
Most of the heavy lifting was done by Michael McDowell of the Progressive Democrats. This amendment was a classic con-job.
Dean van Nguyen explains
Fueled by a lie that people from all over the world were rushing to Ireland to give birth – “maternity tourists” is what justice minister Michael McDowell despicably called this made-up fad – the referendum passed 79 percent to 21 percent. Not a single constituency rejected the amendment. The consequence has been Irish-born children left in a desperate purgatory and at a risk of being rendered stateless – a status so cruel that you’ll find very little political will in this country to impose it on the heavily demonised “ISIS brides”, let alone innocent kids.
I use the word “lie” as this was a referendum to fix a problem that didn’t exist. The Supreme Court in 2003 ruled that non-citizen parents of an Irish citizen child were not necessarily entitled to stay and could be subject to deportation, so any irrational fears the system could be abused were easily soothed if the government so desired. And, as pointed out by Oran Doyle at the time, the information note given to the public provided birth rate figures that were sinisterly trumped-up to include babies with a non-national mother and Irish father (who were obviously entitled to citizenship) and babies born to nationals of other EU member-states (who were entitled to remain here under EU law).
The 2004 referendum should be analysed as a political stunt designed to give the government a leg-up in the local and European elections that occurred on the same day. It’s old-fashioned politricks, folks – throwing society’s most vulnerable under the bus for political capital. Critics called it a racist referendum and they were right.
Link :
The 27th Amendment to the Irish Constitution has been a grievous mistake
Bertie Ahern’s career in Irish politics seemed to be over. He is writing a new chapter. Along with bye-election candidates Malachy Steenson and Gerry Hutch – plus an old crony, councillor Niall Ring – the ex FF boss is helping to create new far-right justifications for atrocities at accommodation centres and random attacks on immigrants, There is blood on Bertie’s hands.
John Meehan May 14 2026
Tomás Ó Flatharta 
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