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Home Page > Blogs > News blogs > Periscope > Irish America stands up for Denis O’Brien and applauds loudly -- Ireland’s top businessman and philanthropist wows New York crowd

Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

Irish America stands up for Denis O’Brien and applauds loudly -- Ireland’s top businessman and philanthropist wows New York crowd

Posted on Thursday, December 06, 2012 at 07:15 AM

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Irish media mogul and philanthropist Denis O'Brien (Photo: Forbes)

Denis O’Brien is Ireland’s equivalent of Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish emigrant who made billions and gave it all away in the final decades of his life.

Though he roamed and prospered far and wide, Carnegie never forgot the millions in need in his own country or anywhere else he operated.

O’Brien has made his billions through his telephone company Digicel which has provided cell phone service to millions of the world's poor.

He has also given back in the countless millions to those countries where he has prospered.

His next assignment will be Burma, he says, or Myanmar if you prefer. It is a country with a population of 63 million, where only two million have cell phones, which has recently opened up to outsiders.

Writing in Time Magazine recently, Bill Clinton rated O’Brien’s work in making financial transactions possible by cell phone as the single most important development in 2012 in helping the poor worldwide.

Impressive.

He has personally given $16.5 million to Haiti in an attempt to help get that country back on its feet.

Of course O’Brien earns a handsome buck, but he gives back. His work on behalf of the destitute in Haiti and elsewhere has won him international acclaim. He is a huge backer of Concern, the Third World agency that has inspired a new generation of Irish to volunteer in the Third World.

Read More: Business 100 Honorees and Keynote Denis O’Brien Celebrated in New York

That is why I was immensely proud to honor him yesterday in New York before a packed audience at the Irish America Magazine Annual Business 100 in New York.

We had never honored a non-American before with our premier business award but both editor Patricia Harty and I felt O’Brien deserved to be the first

Good men like O’Brien are rare as hen’s teeth and like all good men he has drawn ferocious critics as well -- mostly in Ireland.

That is not unusual. "Great hatred, little room" as Yeats wrote and O’Brien’s success began in the Wild West era of capitalism in Ireland when there were few established rules.

O’Brien was perfect for that era, a buccaneer capitalist with no special family ties to the notorious insider world of Irish business.

He emerged with the country’s first cell phone license and turned it into pure gold and some have never forgiven him for upsetting the cozy coterie.

How he got it still exercises some of the chatterati in Ireland.

I think it is time Irish America took a stance on this good and decent man and gave him the respect and acknowledgement he deserves as the pre-eminent Irish businessman and philanthropist of his era.

He is a man who has done enormous good on behalf of so many and will continue to do so. He has raised the Irish banner high and proud wherever he lands in the world. He has reached out to Irish America and is a major supporter of immigration reform.

That is the extraordinary legacy, even if he is sometimes a prophet unheard in his own land.

Over here we hear him – loud and clear. Our message is clear too -- Irish patriots working for the betterment of Ireland, Irish America, and the world, are always welcome.

Because that has always been the way. He is this generation’s Chuck Feeney doing good by doing his best and the packed venue yesterday rising to give him a standing ovation after his remarks recognizes that above all.

Ain’t that America folks.

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Cranleigh | Dec 09, 2012, 12:52 PM EST

Michael O'Leary - someone who beat the best airlines in Europe fair and square, lives in Ireland and pays his taxes there. Denis O'Brien - an 'Irishman' who resides in Malta for tax purposes, whatever that means, made his money in countries known for their light touch approach to regulation, proudest boast is that he's never been charged with a criminal offense and never tires of writing threatening letters to journalists. Who is the better role model?

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Cranleigh | Dec 09, 2012, 12:21 PM EST

Mr. O'Dowd, you might want to do a piece on one of Russia's many buccaneer capitalists who are also victims of envy. So Dinny is heading off to Burma now? That's the place for him alright.

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STEVENSTAR | Dec 07, 2012, 08:55 PM EST

CIARADEXY....Well i love your arrogance .. they're must be something wrong with me..... My dear there is nothing wrong with me, but im begining to think that there is something wrong with you, due to the amount of time your spending on this site and posting your comments all over ... I suggest you take a break and get out more dear, go for a walk or watch some Tv and try and chill out !! :-)

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ciaradexy | Dec 07, 2012, 01:05 PM EST

This man is a tax exile and contributes nothing to Ireland either financially or socially.

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ciaradexy | Dec 07, 2012, 01:04 PM EST

StevenStar, if you havent heard of Denis O'Brien there must be something wrong with you. He has been in the news repeatedly for the past 15 years.

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mamaginnty | Dec 07, 2012, 12:05 PM EST

Money talks, and the brown envelopes still plentiful. He just hasn't been ...yet.

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STEVENSTAR | Dec 07, 2012, 08:47 AM EST

I;'M IRISH I LIVE IN IRELAND AND I NEVER HEARD OF DENIS O BRIEN ... O DEAR !!!

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thetint | Dec 07, 2012, 03:59 AM EST

O'Dowd has a history of fawning to powerful figures.

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anglo-norman | Dec 06, 2012, 09:25 PM EST

Jesus H Christ

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Renelda M. | Dec 06, 2012, 08:21 PM EST

Just last night I was musing about philanthropists. I was musing on which cultures have given most to other cultures, not just to their own. And here today I read about Denis O'Brien. He sounds amazing. May he continue to be blessed, and to share his blessins with the poor of the world and, of course, his own country.

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2ndrepubalik | Dec 06, 2012, 07:35 PM EST

Denis O'Brien is undoubtedly one of the most successful businessmen in modern day Ireland but is dogged with questions over the matter of how He was awarded the Mobile Telephone License for Esat Digifone in the first place and then , when He sold it ( for a quarter of a billion), - He quickly moved to Portugal perfectly legally -where there is no capital gains tax. He then moved to Malta where His address is a humble abode.I'dve probably done the same but that does not necessarily make it right. There is a lot to come out yet to give people a clearer picture and hopefully vindicate DOB's version of events - in the meantime questions remain.The BIG legacy of all of this may be the fact that the two other contenders for the Mobile License ( one being Motorola) are poised to sue the Irish State for unfairly awarding the license to DOB and IF they win the awards against the Irish State ( aka Taxpayer) could be enormous !This saga is going to run for years unfortunately and the Legal Eagles in every corner are salivating at the fees to be earned.

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MichaelJTully | Dec 06, 2012, 06:17 PM EST

Niall you are some clown, at one stage I was foolishly under the impression you had some cop on. Jaysus how you have let yourself down. Then again you have blueshirt connections.

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kevinhayes | Dec 06, 2012, 05:50 PM EST

Shame to see Niall O'Dowd be a pawn in the phony rewrite of the life and times of Dinny O'Brien. There is big money behind this PR effort - I'm with @KevinKehoe - the difficult to prove but obvious corruption of Dinny getting the mobile license in Ireland and the subsequent "tax exiling" to Portugal to avoid capital gains tax. Apart from those 2, there's a lot to admire!?

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KevinKehoe | Dec 06, 2012, 04:34 PM EST

“Irish patriots working for the betterment of Ireland” I don't think so. Ok we know the Moriarty Tribunal labeled him and Michael Lowry corrupt. Lowry was responsible for awarding Mr. O’Brian the Cell phone license . When a great offer came O ‘Brian’s way for that license from O2 he took it and who wouldn't to be honest and immediately transferred himself and the profit [€550 million if I’m not mistaken] to Portugal. No revenue back to the country that help’t him on his road to stardom with a few bob in his back pocket. If he had paid back revenue on his profit well and good, but he didn't. Denis like so many others who made a fortune in Ireland then abandoned her to the wolfs who are know chewing on the bones of the ordinary people of this island. There down to the marrow after this weeks budget. PS it must be said there are still many who did do well for themselves and still contribute in many ways to Ireland and if Denis O’Brian is one of them, good luck to him.

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Frosty38 | Dec 06, 2012, 04:15 PM EST

there is always one on here with NEGATIVE OPINIONS keep them to yourself

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