Dublin, April 02, SPA -- Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, 56, announcedWednesday in Dublin that he would step down on May 6 after 11 yearsin office as pressure increased on him amid speculation about hisfinancial affairs. In announcing the date of his departure, Ahern said that he was"putting the interests of the Irish people and (his) Fianna Failparty" before his "personal interests." Ahern, who entered Irish politics in 1977, will step down from hisroles as prime minister, and president of Fianna Failahead of local elections and a referendum on the revised EU treaty,the only such referendum in the European Union.--SPA www.spa.gov.sa/542483