Opposition Senator Leonard Santucci will be the party's candidate for the Pembroke East Central by election which must be held by November 26 to fill the House of Assembly seat made vacant by the death of David Allen.

"I would seek to be as faithful in the discharge of my responsibilities to the community as I am in the church," he said at a press briefing yesterday. "To that end, the work that I do in the church requires commitment, it requires honesty and integrity, it requires that we bear the interests of the people at heart."

Sen. Santucci, a Minister of the AME church, who was introduced by party leader Grant Gibbons near the area known as "42nd Street", said that he is well suited for serving the community in which he was born and lives. His primary concerns are youth development, the drugs scourge and education and he said he is keen to help restore the electorate's faith in good government.

After introducing Sen. Santucci as a "good example of one of the rising young leaders" being attracted to the United Bermuda Party (UBP), leader Grant Gibbons said the party's defeat in 1998 had been "instrumental" in its transformation.

"We believe we are focused more clearly than ever before on the needs of everyone in this Country and more importantly, on how to tackle them efficiently," Dr. Gibbons said.

Sen. Santucci said that the fact that he works and lives in the constituency makes him intimately aware of the needs of the area.

When asked what he would choose if his religious beliefs and the wishes of his constituents came into conflict, he said it was difficult to comment hypothetically.

"Certainly there is the potential for some conflicts but I would be premature if I were to suggest what they might be. I don't think it would be appropriate for me to prejudice myself or the members of the House of Assembly or the potential development of legislation."

But Sen. Santucci noted that the AME church had long been involved in the community. "I would seek to be as true to scripture as I can."

On whether he would support an amendment to the Human Rights Act which would prohibit discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, he said he has always felt that a period of education should be engaged in in anticipation of the legislation.

He accused the Government of being "derelict" in that it has dealt with other human rights such as capital punishment, but not sexual orientation.

"I can assure you that many of my clerical colleagues, including Rev. Wilbur Lowe of the PLP, will have concerns... I am not going to state categorically that I will support or oppose until I see it in print. One of the worse things we can do is to be prejudicial even to potential legislation because we are not doing the process any good. Being a clergyman, being a Christian I certainly have a personal faith based position but at the same time I recognise that the issue of sexuality is a broader issue. It goes beyond the four walls of the church and it pervades many facets of our society and it would be my hope that even people within the church would be open minded and be prepared to examine it on its merit, based on its content."

He said it was important to examine the implications of the amendment. "Until its put in black and white we don't know what we are dealing with in some total. I want to make an educated response, based on what is on the order paper. I would also say that, from a biblical perspective, the notion of an amendment ought not to scare, or disturb or unnerve any Christian person... or any person who relates to a higher power from a faith based perspective. My bible leads me to believe that these things must come to be."

He added he suspected that Government had not brought up the issue because it did not know how to guage the electorate. "And I think they regard it as something that they are better served holding close to their chest out of their own sense of fear. Sometimes things that are too close to us tend to concern us the most. But I am of the opinion that this... is something that will speak to persons from both sides of the political divide and every racial, social and economic stratum of society."