Full text of statement by former director general of Fas Rody Molloy to the Public Accounts Committee at Leinster House, December 4th, 2008
Mr Chairman,
May I make a few brief opening comments?
I have been a public servant for over 35 years. I have worked with members of virtually all parties in the Oireachtas during that period. I have always shown the utmost of respect for parliament and all of its committees. I have appeared before various Oireachtas committees over the years and have always tried to assist them to the best of my ability.
I say this, Mr Chairman, in order to assure you and the other members of the committee that my non-attendance at last week's meeting was not in any way a show of disrespect by me to the committee.
I had resigned from Fás the previous Tuesday and was no longer Accounting Officer. In the circumstances, I felt it would be inappropriate for me to attend last week's meeting. It was clear from your opening statement that you expected me to attend. My understanding was that I was not invited to attend and therefore [I] did not do so. If
I misunderstood the situation I apologise to the committee. I can assure you that I intended no disrespect to the committee.
In any event, I'm not sure that I would have been in a fit state to be of any real service to the committee. You will understand that the few days after my resignation were traumatic ones for me and my family particularly, as my home was besieged by elements of the media.
The release of Fás internal documents under FOI, and the leaking of other documents, and the treatment of those documents in the media made my position as director general increasingly untenable over the past few
months. I believe I responded to all issues raised in the audit process in an appropriate manner. Mr [Niall] Saul's evidence to the committee last week gives credence to this view.
The final straw came with my ill-judged interview on the RTÉ [Pat] Kenny show. I knew after that interview that my position was no longer tenable, and after long and difficult consideration I informed the Tánaiste and the chairman of Fás of my decision on Tuesday of last week.
I was proud to lead Fás for eight years. I never ceased to be amazed at the dedication and commitment of the staff of Fás to deliver important services to the community we tried to served. I believe I made a contribution to continuously improving that service. I also made some mistakes along the way.
In relation to foreign travel, I understood that the class of travel was in order and in line with public service guidelines. I now accept in hindsight that it was not appropriate, particularly for an organisation charged with helping many people who are underprivileged, and [that it] should not have happened.
Finally, Mr Chairman, let me say that the services provided by Fás were never more needed than they are now. For this reason, it is important that your investigation and the subsequent examination by the C&AG can
restore confidence in the organisation and allow the new leadership to rebuild morale as quickly as possible.