Dissident members will again seek to win a seat on the board of directors, while pushing for the immediate conversion of the building society into a bank. Nobody expects them to be successful, and similar rebel heaves have failed in the past. But growing impatience with the snail's-pace progress towards demutualisation and the eventual sale of the Nationwide, which will unlock windfalls of 12,000- 15,000 per member, could win the dissidents a more sympathetic ear.

Consumer advocate Brendan Burgess will have to unseat chairman Michael Walsh, a loyal associate of millionaire financier Dermot Desmond, if he is to get to the boardroom table.

Among other things, he says he would push for better treatment of borrowers if elected.

The dissidents made their arguments in a circular distributed to Nationwide's 120,000 eligible members last week. They called for building society status to be abandoned immediately, without waiting for long-delayed changes in the law, to ensure older members do not lose their windfalls.

According to one of the dissidents, Shane Hogan:

"While Irish Nationwide has been talking, Irish Permanent and First National have proceeded with their demutualisations and returned value to their members. But Irish Nationwide members have been left whistling for their money. Elderly members are dying each year and, in most cases, their entitlement to a windfall dies with them.

New carpet-baggers are joining all the time, and each new member reduces the size of your windfall."

These arguments got short shrift from Nationwide's directors, who accused Burgess of making misleading statements and dismissed him as an unsuitable candidate to join their ranks.

They also claim that members would be shooting themselves in the foot by voting for immediate demutualisation. Such a move would cut potential windfalls by as much a quarter because, without a change in the law, Nationwide could not be sold to a bigger bank, the directors claim.

"The best way for members to get the maximum benefit is with the new legislation which will allow a trade sale to a third party of 100% of the society when converted.

This would give the existing members, rather than institutions, the benefit of any takeover premium, " says the board.