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DUBLIN — Two parties in Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern's government asked him on Thursday to clarify the evidence he has given to an anti-corruption tribunal, in a sign of growing tension in the coalition.
Mr. Ahern, whose Fianna Fail party formed an alliance with the smaller Greens and Progressive Democrats last year for a third successive term in office, has given several days of testimony since September to a tribunal investigating his finances.
Mr. Ahern has admitted receiving tens of thousands of pounds from friends, businessmen and family in the early 1990s, including a "political donation for personal use" while finance minister in 1994, but he has denied any wrongdoing.
He came under renewed attack this week after a testimony by his former constituency secretary was seen as contradicting evidence Mr. Ahern had given earlier about a particular payment.
"I just think now in this instance, because there is considerable public concern, it would be better if a clarifying statement was made," said Environment Minister John Gormley, who leads the Green Party.
Health Minister Mary Harney, a Progressive Democrat, also called on Mr. Ahern to dispel what she called "considerable public disquiet" about the secretary's testimony.
A government spokesman said Mr. Ahern would not issue any statement and reserve his evidence for the tribunal.
Main opposition party Fine Gael, which has repeatedly called on Mr. Ahern to resign, welcomed the fact that Mr. Ahern's coalition allies had come out what it called "self imposed hibernation on the issues.”
"The junior coalition partners have both finally reached a point where the extraordinary events at the tribunal have finally forced them to react," spokesman Phil Hogan said in a statement.
Mr. Ahern, who is being questioned as part of a wider decade-long investigation into relationships between politicians and property developers, has described his finances as complex but not improper following the breakdown of his marriage.
