Activist Charles Spanswick has declared himself a candidate in Hamilton's next mayoral elections - a full two and a half years before the vote is to take place.

"I'm a very strong believer the City of Hamilton needs me very badly," said Mr. Spanswick. He said he wanted to be Mayor because of his love for the City. "If anything happens to me I'd like my heart to be laid in Hamilton," he told The Royal Gazette.

Mr. Spanswick, 56, has twice made such an announcement. Just last year he announced that he was the best person to replace William Frith when he stepped down.

Mr. Frith was succeeded by current Mayor Lawson Mapp. Now, says Mr. Spanswick, Lawson Mapp needs to go - and so do many of the Corporation's aldermen and councillors.

"It's always been the City fathers and it's time for a change," he said.

They don't seem to be doing anything besides have meetings and nobody even knows who they are, he said.

"You never hear from aldermen at all. These guys have been there 25, 30 years but you never hear from them.''

Mr. Spanswick says he has many issues he would like resolved. He says too many of the Corporation of Hamilton's employees are unproductive, taxes are too high and garbage trucks should be banned from the City.

His points to the City's handling of last week's storm as a reason why the City needs to be swept clean of its current leadership.

Lack of foresight led to a "totally ruined" canopy at the horse and carriage stand on Front Street, he said. And signs were damaged because they were not taken down in time.

"Where were the men who are in charge of the Corporation - including Roger Sherratt ?" asked Mr. Spanswick.

He said that there were just 480 registered electors according to the most updated list supplied by the Corporation. But the list of eligible voters has to be in the "thousands" Mr. Spanswick insisted. The blame for having scores of effectively disenfranchised voters rested squarely with the Corporation which had made anaemic efforts to have people register themselves only when elections were pending, Mr. Spanswick claimed.

Mr. Spanswick says that he had a steering committee of some 30 people for his campaign and one of their priorities will be to get people registered.

To run for Mayor one must be a City taxpayer. Mr. Spanswick says that he is eligible because he is "involved in several companies" in the City. But he has yet to decide which of the companies he would use to register himself as an elector.

And he plans on expanding the list of eligible voters to include non Bermudian business people in the City.

"They pay taxes," he said. "Under my administration they will be allowed to vote."

Corporation of Hamilton Secretary Roger Sherratt defended the City from Mr. Spanswick's allegations of lack of foresight in the lead up to the storm.

"Unfortunately, like a lot of people we were caught unawares by the force of the storm," he said. The horse and carriage canopy on Front Street "could easily withstand 40 knot winds" but no one foresaw that the winds would be much higher.

"With regard to other problems we've actually fared very well."

Of Mr. Spanswick's mayoral ambitions, he said : "At this point he's not eligible to stand for Mayor... On neither of the two occasions has he been eligible to stand for mayor because he's not a taxpayer in the City. He's not on the voters' register." He acknowledged that there are more people eligible to vote in the City than the numbers of people actually registered.

But, said Mr. Sherratt: "Anyone who is interested to register to vote can always call the City Hall and we'd be delighted to help them register."

And that goes for Mr. Spanswick too. "All he needs to do is to be paying taxes, own or live in the City or own a business that rents a valuation unit. There's never been a reason why he can't register to vote other than the fact that he's not eligible. We'd be delighted to register him if he qualifies."