Concerns about the Bermuda Housing Corporation should be directed to the quango's Acting General Manager Richard James, Health Minister Nelson Bascome said yesterday.

Mr. Bascome responded to a suggestion from Opposition Whip Maxwell Burgess that an independent counsel be appointed to look into BHC client complaints - particularly where the individuals had lost money - to see if the clients have legal cases which could lead to the recovery of their monies.

Mr. Bascome said such a position was completely unnecessary as Mr. James was fulfilling that role.

The Minister said, in some cases where work was left undone, the contractors involved had been private contractors who were not officially linked to BHC.

And he said that local news media reports on situations experienced by various people should not be considered "first hand accounts".

"In certain cases, some contractors did some very bad work," Mr. Bascome added. "The housing corporation is now helping home owners go after those contractors."

Mr. Bascome said some contractors were designated by the BHC clients' own preferences while others had been selected with BHC guidance.

The Minister also suggested that some people are used as "pawns" in this country and that one person who had resigned from BHC ended up with a job as General Manager in a company linked to the UBP.

Overall, Mr. Bascome said, Bermuda is doing well today in terms of employment and benefits are being more evenly spread around the population.

He said the power structure of the country is shifting and that concerns some people.

While `Gibbons', `Barritt' and `Dunkley' are household names, now others are becoming household names like `Smith'," Mr. Bascome added.

As power shift, many Bermudians are beginning to taste wealth for the first time. "Black Bermudians tell of jobs they are getting and how things are moving forward and they are very happy," he said.

Government backbencher Stanley Morton added that a pattern is beginning to emerge in the Opposition's strategy where he expects they will launch attacks against every Minister and Ministry over the coming weeks.

"They'll come up with accusations and allegations and that's normal," he said. "If we find any evidence to substantiate any statement let's deal with it."

Mr. Morton also said the UBP had scandals of their own when they were Government.