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In his televised address on Wednesday evening, Opposition Leader Michael Dunkley recommended that a Royal Commission be appointed to deal with matters relating to the Bermuda Housing Corporation.

Since the appointment of a Royal Commission is directly under the purview of the Governor, who already has appointed the three most senior members of the Judicial and Law enforcement branches of government, to investigate and resolve the matter, we have to wonder what Mr. Dunkley hopes to attain by calling for a Royal Commission. Nor can Mr. Dunkley justify his suggestion that the PLP somehow influenced the findings of the investigators. These men were appointed by the Governor and were answerable only to him. In fact, it was only a year ago that the Governor over-rode the wishes of Premier Alex Scott with respect to the appointment of a Chief Justice. On what basis, then, does Mr. Dunkley suggest that the findings of the Governor's team were somehow influenced by the PLP government?

Since the men who carried out the original investigation were by no means under the control or influence of the government of Bermuda, and found the government ministers under investigation to be innocent of all charges, that should have ended the matter. However, we now find that confidential documents relating to the case have been leaked to certain members of the public by persons unknown but who certainly had access to the records of the police department.

Our Premier had no option but to ask the Governor in the strongest language possible to investigate the leaks and to take action to resolve the matter. There was no other course of action available to the Premier since he has no direct control over the police, public prosecutions or the Judiciary by virtue of Bermuda's colonial status.

We again see Mr. Dunkley taking advantage of the matter in the hope of securing some political advantage, known only to him. If the highest authority in the land is the Governor, what on earth can a Royal Commission do to resolve the matter? Would not the Royal Commission need to be appointed by the same Governor who has already investigated the matter and who considers it resolved? Clearly, Mr. Dunkley is looking for a basis to continue his ill-founded charges of corruption, no matter what this is doing to the integrity of the administration of the police of the office of prosecutions and of the Judiciary.

Mr. Dunkley is casting aspersions on the whole structure of law and order in this country. He is saying the British Governor does not know what he is doing and neither does the Commissioner of Police, the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Chief Justice who fall directly under his direction.

Yet, Mr. Dunkley has no hesitation in charging the PLP with wanting to destroy our fundamental institutions of law and order.

Maybe Mr. Dunkley is really trying to introduce independence to Bermuda.

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