complaints at a liquor licence hearing yesterday.

And the lawyer for the Front Street nightclub half-jokingly compared proceedings before the Liquor Licensing Authority to the Spanish Inquisition.

When Police announced they were opposing the liquor licence renewal for The Oasis, one of the grounds they stated was that the manager was "not a fit and proper person.'' Yesterday, Police Chief Insp. Larry Smith clarified that the character of manager Mr. Mark Osborne was not in question, it was the level of control he exercised over the premises.

As for the second Police complaint about repeated offences under the Liquor Licensing Act, Oasis lawyer Mr. Jeffrey Elkinson challenged Chief Insp. Smith to cite a single conviction. In fact, he said The Oasis has not even been charged under the Act in seven years under the present ownership.

Mr. Elkinson noted that none of the "incidents'' in a Police report presented by Chief Insp. Smith were proven. And for a short time he parried with Mr.

Francis over whether anything short of a conviction could be considered an "offence'' under the Act.

"For the Police to come forward at the end of the year to say there's been a lot of offences against the Act for which they've never laid charges simply can't be conceivable in any jurisdiction where the rule of law applies,'' Mr.

Elkinson said.

Mr. Francis noted the tribunal was not a criminal or civil court, and was not suited to an adversarial approach. "We are conducting an inquiry,'' he said.

"Your Worship means like the Spanish Inquisition?'' asked Mr. Elkinson.

Thefts, assaults, a bathroom drug transaction, and after-hours serving of alcohol at the time of the switch to Daylight Saving Time were among the complaints cited by Insp. Smith.

Mr. Vivian Redford, president and a director of Oasis Club Ltd., said The Oasis had received no complaints or official warnings from Police in the seven years his company has owned the club.

"We encourage Police presence at our nightclub and have done so ever since we opened,'' Mr. Redford said. "In fact, our nightclub is a popular meeting spot for Policemen in their off-duty hours.'' As for the drug deal in the bathroom, it was spotted by an off-duty officer who is a regular patron of The Oasis. And club security assisted in calling on-duty officers, he said.

Mr. Redford and Mr. Osborne maintained their security took proper action when any incident occurred.

The Authority reserved its decision to a future date. It is awaiting submissions from The Oasis on the desired opening hours. While it presently opens from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., it was revealed yesterday that under its licence terms, it should be opening at noon or seeking permission to open later.