He organised Golfgate ⛳️
He controls votes, candidates & deals 🤝
He's the 2nd most powerful man in Fianna Fáil
He stood alongside Haughey, Reynolds, Bertie, Cowen & now Micheál.
Oh and he gets paid €5million in State Contracts for IPAS...🧵
Donie Cassidy is the Fianna Fáil fixer.
When the party needs money, hotels, venues or canvassers.... Donie PROVIDES. He knows where the bodies are buried.
In the room where decisions are made, he holds court.
Taoisigh come and go.
Donie endures.
Across ~50 years, Cassidy has led the Seanad, been a TD, fixed internal wars & handpicks candidates.
So it's only fitting that he now collects €5mill+ in State contracts....💸
Ironically, his most famous achievement will be Golfgate.. ⛳️
80 politicians and judges broke Covid lockdown rules at a Cassidy-organised dinner.
Two Minister & EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan all forced to resign.
But aul Donie didn't just survive, he thrived...
In 2022 he was re-elected as Vice President of Fianna Fáil.
Not a backbencher. Not retired. No resignation.
He sits on the national executive.
Shaping policy, selecting candidates.
He is "the machine"
In 2021, the Ditch reported that one of Cassidy's companies was granted ~€40k from the Arts Council.
Coincidently also on that list was our best pal Banty McEnany...who got ~€60k !!
Small world eh!? 🤔
So why is NOBODY reporting this: 👇🏻
Donie Cassidy's company "Great Denmark Hospitalty Limited" has been paid ~€5million+ in State Contracts for emergency accommodation!!
How has this not been picked up in the news?? 🤔
Cassidy and his two sons own 100% of Great Denmark Hospitality Limited
Donie Snr controls 100% of the A shares which give him full voting rights and control.
Its ALL him.
The Company was set up in 2021 for the specific purpose of buying the famous Barry Hotel.. (which played a part in the 1916 rising and popular GAA match day watering hole)
Its reported he paid €8m for it.
The most recent accounts tell us that Cassidy pays Dalata hotels €100k a year to manage the place. Yet he charges the States ~€1.5m annually!
It also tells us that he personally loaned €2.3M to the company... this will be repaid tax-free from State-funded contracts.
At current rate of profit, Barry’s Hotel will pay itself off in just 6 years ... all thanks to taxpayer money!
No tourist risk.
No seasonality.
Minimal operational costs.
Just sweet-sweet steady taxpayer profits.
Opinion
Given Donie Cassidy’s deep, decades-long influence inside Fianna Fáil, is it any wonder that policies around emergency accommodation and public contracts won't change anytime soon?
I'm reliably told that he is in and out of ministers offices on a daily basis.
So its reasonable to assume, Fianna Fáil won't be changing this system for another 4 to 6 years .. until Barry’s Hotel is fully paid off !! 😭
Fianna Fáil needs to modernise badly. It is stuck in the cute hoorism of the past. There is no ambitious vision of the future..... its "whats in it for me".
The fish rots from the head.
and in 2025, Fianna Fáil is no different.
If you like or value this content and want to support my efforts please do so 🙏
Afters months of FOI requests, I have finally received an EXPLOSIVE set of reports.. some deemed too dangerous to release.
You might want to sit down for this...🧵
Before We Start - Explanation
I requested incident reports from 3 IPAS centres in Dublin & Wicklow for a ~4month period, Nov to Feb
Each centre is managed by Igo Café, the controversial company run by David Mooney, which was paid €12.4million in Q4 alone.
The Dept. confirmed that 22 relevant reports existed but withheld 7 due to safety & ongoing investigations. We know some of these are in relation to knife attacks and fires.
Ok, here we go....
Threats to Kill & Physical Violence
📅 Jan 29, 2025 | 📄 Record #14
“I will kill you”, then punched him 10 times
A dispute over TikTok spiralled. One man was punched repeatedly in the face while screaming threats to kill. Security and multiple staff had to intervene.
How does an Indian man living in asylum accommodation get awarded millions in State Contracts?
How is he able to finance the purchase of hotels & mansions? while also owing €150k+ in judgments to Revenue! ..🧵
Mohsin Manzoor Hospitality Ltd is one of the fastest growing companies in the Immigration Industry.
In Q1 '24 they made only €25k but by Q3 they were raking in over €900k.
A 3000% increase.
They are entrepreneurs of the year ! !
Unlucky for them they happened to buy Hearns Hotel in Clonmel.
(This is where I had my communion, confirmation & several other family events growing up - so naturally I got curious when I heard it being turned into an Asylum Centre).
"Oh what a tangled web we weave
When first we practice to deceive"
Meet Coldec Group: a shadowy of network hotels, estate homes & apartments profiting off emergency accommodation.
Banking €50M+ in taxpayer money since 2022.
But is one man pulling all the strings? 🧵
The "Barber" & "Painter"
The directors of many Coldec companies are Patrick Ward (a barber) & Ronan Holbrook (a painter) have no real estate experience.
Both had financial struggles before suddenly becoming figureheads for companies managing €70M+ in property assets. How!?
Follow the Money 🕵🏻♂️
Coldec runs on leverage, leverage, leverage.
High-stakes loans from shadowy financiers.
€32m from Earlsfort Capital (ex-Anglo execs), backed by US giant Castlelake & Austria's Bawag Bank. Glenigo Capital & Bolt Property Finance also in on the action.