THE RELAUNCHED Villagemagazine is offering a reward of €10,000 for "comprehensive, verifiable information" about the funding of the Libertas campaign against the Lisbon Treaty.
The new publisher and editor of Village, Michael Smith, says "no imputation of illegality is asserted or intended" in offering the reward but that an investigative magazine should examine such matters. "A magazine with a progressive and investigative agenda would be expected to be concerned with the mysterious nature behind an organisation that has turned out to be as influential as Libertas has been," Mr Smith said.
The offer states that "information must be communicated exclusively to Villagebefore December 31st" and that it will be treated in strictest confidence.
It is not the first time Mr Smith or Villagecontributor Colm MacEochaidh have made such a proposition. In 1995, they offered a reward for information that eventually led to the instigation of the Flood/Mahon tribunal.
John McGuirk of Libertas described the offer as "a good publicity stunt" and said he did not expect "anyone would take up the offer".
