Published: Wednesday, 20th January, 2010 6:00pm

Private banking inquiry would show who really runs Ireland

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What a wonderful little country we have.

When the visage that was the Celtic Tiger was so brutally lifted towards the end of 2007, the national media and its well of so-called "experts" laughed off any rumour of property collapses and the depths of recession.

And yet, in January 2010, the same "experts" are being rolled out by the same media sources, telling us that we will spend our way out of recession over the coming year; and that by 2015, growth will have expanded by more than 15 percent.

Well, phew. Let's breathe a sigh of relief: the experts have spoken. This latest pearl of wisdom came from John Fitzgerald in the ESRI. He will undoubtedly be cheer-led by politicians who believe they have restored prosperity, by lumping generations with unpayable debt, while failing to address the factors which led to our crisis.

The realities of the recession are very stark for us all, but remarkably, the "experts" still have time and column space to expand the bubble in which they have lived for the past decade.

The omniscience enjoyed by these pillars of intellectual foresight seems to be shared only by those who ran our financial system into the ground.

Politicians do not even enjoy such a blanket of security. They are subject to public scrutiny, and when the planning and corruption scandals came to light in recent years, inquiries were held in public. One or two politicians went to jail; some had their reputations ruined, and many got away scot free.

More importantly, the public - who pay their wages and have as much a stake and entitlement in this State as they do - were permitted to see the awful truth for themselves.

But apparently, we will not be afforded the same opportunity when senior bankers are hauled before an inquiry to explain their role in Ireland's financial meltdown.

NAMA aside, the general public has already handed over €11 billion to keep the country's zombie banks ticking over. More will be shelled out in 2010.

We were told - by politicians - that this gift to private institutions was a necessary donation to save and stabilise the Irish economy. The donation was made against the will of the people, and possibly the only thing preventing anarchy is the hope that the people who landed us in this situation will be outed and investigated in the public eye.

But this week, we heard Government chief whip, Pat Carey (Fianna Fáil) telling us that hearings of an inquiry into the banking crisis will, "initially", be held in private as evidence is gathered.

Does anyone find it uncomfortable that in a land where the Ray Burkes, Bertie Aherns and Charles Haugheys of this world can be brought before public tribunals, private bankers are treated to a shell of privacy?

Indeed, if Joe Public engaged in any financial improprieties, you can be sure that the full weight of the courts would be brought down on him in a very public way.

One would think that after all the negative press which Fianna Fáil politicians have received in recent years, they would be only too happy to facilitate a public inquiry, to focus the spotlight on a different bogeyman for once.

But they seem determined to keep this investigation behind closed doors - something which raises a disturbing question about democracy and accountability in this country.

If everyone from the President down to Joe Public can be subject to public inquiries and legal processes, and if bankers are exempt, what does that say about the hierarchy of power in Ireland?

Just who exactly is in charge?