Bertie Ahern has paid tribute to former RTÉ journalist David Davin-Power, who died yesterday at the age of 72.

Mr Davin-Power joined the State broadcaster in the 1980s and became a well-known voice as part of the Morning Ireland team.

After a brief stint in commercial radio, he returned to RTÉ and was appointed Northern Editor in the runup to the Good Friday Agreement.

He wrote a newspaper column and worked as a political commentator in recent years.

On The Pat Kenny show today, former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern remembered Mr Davin-Power as a "good colleague”.

“He was a funny guy,” said Mr Ahern.

“He was a very witty guy, and even if there were some – as there always is over in the Dáil – tense issues; he turned it around into a very witty one or two liner.

“I think he was always good fun for that – he was a very good storyteller.”

David Davin Power is seen covering a Sinn Fein Ard Fheis for RTÉ in 2005. Image: RollingNews.ie

Mr Ahern said the former RTÉ journalist always made an effort to report fairly and equally on issues in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.

“He followed the IRA ceasefire in August [1994], and then the Loyalists in October,” Mr Ahern said.

“So he was out there talking to all these people – and of course, if you were going to be able to do the story, you have to have a fairly good professional relationship with them all.

"He was very good at doing that.”

Mr Ahern added that Mr Davin-Power was always ‘really professional’ in maintaining contacts.

“He had to build a relationship with all the sides,” said Mr Ahern.

“Including the Loyalist leaders and the people who were close to paramilitaries - and I think he did that really professionally.”

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