Deputy Opposition Leader Patricia Gordon-Pamplin last night accused the Premier of conducting an “orchestrated campaign” to distract public attention away from the issues at the heart of the Bermuda Housing Corporation scandal.

The United Bermuda Party politician said a press conference called by the Attorney General yesterday afternoon, in which he pledged to protect Government MPs from “further unfair attack” and criticised the Opposition’s call for a Royal Commission into the affair, was the latest in a series of diversionary tactics.

Sen. Philip Perinchief’s comments followed a televised address by the Premier last Friday in which he threatened to suspend business with the Governor if the source of a leaked Police file into alleged corruption at BHC was not uncovered and a call by Public Safety Minister David Burch earlier this week for the Governor to relinquish control of the Police.

Shadow Finance Minister Mrs. Gordon Pamplin said: “The continuing focus on the leak rather than the content of last week’s sensational news stories on the BHC scandal is an orchestrated campaign to divert attention from a fundamentally more important concern.

“There is an elephant in the room which must be addressed and that is unchallenged news reports of alleged widespread corruption at the highest levels of our government. Our call for a Royal Commission into the BHC scandal was made to protect the public interest.

“There is a pressing need to hold government to account for the behaviour of ministers and to make changes to ensure it never happens again.”

Sen. Perinchief said Government planned to make a complaint to the Broadcasting Commission over a three-minute statement by Opposition Leader Michael Dunkley which aired on Wednesday evening. The Justice Minister claimed Mr. Dunkley “blatantly ignored the rules set out” for such broadcasts. “The speech disseminated by broadcast media, clearly in response to a Government message delivered by the Premier last week, was longer than is allowed and included words that the rules stipulate are prohibited,” he said.

“The proper course of action in this instance is a complaint to the Broadcasting Commission.

“And that is what we will do. That body will decide whether or not any infractions did or did not occur.”

Mrs. Gordon-Pamplin said: “We make no apologies for the call, nor that we took TV time to make it.

“If Attorney General Perinchief wants to complain to the Broadcast Commission so be it. He is simply acting out the Premier’s continuing campaign to distract public attention from a scandal that, if allowed to pass, will damage our system of governance and our worldwide reputation for integrity, fair play and trustworthiness.”

Shadow Justice Minister John Barritt added: “It is extraordinary the lengths the Brown regime is going to prevent the public from knowing things that we think need to be known in regard to the BHC scandal, particularly with regard to the conduct of Government Ministers.

“We take this opportunity to renew our call for a Royal Commission into this highly questionable affair, and urge Bermudians from all walks of life to recognise that this government is going to extreme lengths to stop them from knowing the truth of the matter.

“Serious inroads are being made against free speech and a free press, and for what purpose,” he asked. “Clearly, it is not the public interest.”