The idea that Transport Minister Ewart Brown had no influence over Bermuda?s public pension funds in 2002 was ?naive in the extreme?, Shadow Legislative Affairs Minister Trevor Moniz said yesterday.

Mr. Moniz also called on Government to make public disclosure of how campaigns are financed, saying: ?It?s time for people to put up or shut up ? do we support transparency and accountability or not??

Mr. Moniz spoke yesterday as accusations continued to fly about whether or not a luncheon held in Washington, D.C. in 2002 to raise funds for Dr. Brown?s personal election campaign constituted an unethical example of pay-to-play, or was mere run-of-the-mill political fundraising.

The luncheon was arranged by Government?s pension funds consultant, Tina Poitevien, and guests appear to have included current and potential money managers and stockbrokers for the Bermuda pension funds. Each guest contributed $2,500 to ?Dr. Ewart Brown (PLP)?.

Noting that ?all we have at this point is a third-hand account of what he did?, Mr. Moniz added: ?It seems to be it was highly inappropriate ? the wrong signal to send. Of course, we are all still waiting for the explanation from Government.?

Though Dr. Brown has been under manners ? apart from briefly terming the allegations ?groundless? last night ? a spokeswoman for Ms Poitevien?s company, Fiduciary Investment Services (FIS), said last week that the guests attended the luncheon because of their ?close personal? friendship with Dr. Brown and his wife Wanda Henton. ?The attendees at the luncheon were motivated to support Dr. Brown as a result of their individual, personal relationships with him and/or his wife, not their employment relationships with any US companies,? she said. ?It stretches belief that the luncheon could be construed as part of a pay-to-play scheme because Dr. Brown had no authority with respect to the Bermuda Public Pension Funds.?

That statement, Mr. Moniz said yesterday, was ?way off base? thanks to the concept of collective responsibility.

Dr. Brown may not have been Finance Minister, he explained, but he was Transport Minister, and as such a member of the Cabinet where all Ministers share equal power and jurisdiction. Premier Alex Scott has noted several times that he himself is ?first among equals? in Cabinet with all Ministers sharing collective responsibility.

?The idea that paying one member of Cabinet wouldn?t influence another is naive in the extreme,? Mr. Moniz said.

Public disclosure of campaign financing ? who?s given how much money to who ? would be a ?very good idea,? he said. ?We?re seeing a lot of what?s loosely termed as ?sleaze? out there ... The idea that these payments are purely gratuitous and nothing to do with gaining influence rings a bit hollow.?

While setting up the Register of Interests he said former PLP Tourism Minister David Allen was supportive of the idea, recalling that Mr. Allen had expressed to him a desire to implement such a procedure once the register was complete. ?So, at the time, the support was there.?

However he admitted he ?would be interested? to see what support he would get on the initiative from both the PLP and his own party. ?In party politics there is usually support for things that are going to affect the other side, but when it hits too close to home, they quickly back off.?

Last night Premier Alex Scott that until laws and regulations are in place regarding campaign financing Parliamentarians must ?act responsibly?.

As for Mr. Moniz?s call to publicly disclose all sources of campaign funding, he said his party?s funding has ?all been above board? ? but did not commit to a stance, calling for a proposal on the matter before going any further. was unable to contact Opposition Leader Grant Gibbons on the issue yesterday. Such disclosure aside, Mr. Moniz said that under the Register of Interests Dr. Brown was obligated to report such financial gifts as those made during the Washington luncheon ? and, to his recollection, those gifts had not been noted.