The Tribune

By CHESTER ROBARDS

Tribune Senior Reporter

crobards@tribunemedia.net

THE war of words between Environment Minister Earl Deveaux and Democratic National Alliance (DNA) candidate Ben Albury continues to flare, with Mr Deveaux formally seeking recordings of a radio show on which Mr Albury was a guest.

However, according to a letter sent by Mr Deveaux to the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) requesting that the recording be released by Island FM 102.9, the show was never recorded due to a technical error. Mr Albury said he had been told the same by the radio station.

Mr Deveaux told The Tribune recently that he was requesting the recording because he did not hear the show live. And he insisted that he would sue Mr Albury over comments made by him prior to the radio show, which aired two weeks ago.

The caustic dispute between the Minister and the DNA candidate, carried on in the media and from the floor of the House of Assembly, is whether or not the Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) is preparing to drill an oil well in the Bahamas.

Mr Albury insists that, according to BPC's schedule and possibly its agreement with the government, they are allowed to drill a test well within the next year.

However, a moratorium on drilling was put in place by the government and Albury maintains that Mr Deveaux has said little more on the subject to answer his questions, other than that the moratorium remains in place.

"I'm not trying to get into a war with Mr Deveaux and I don't have a vendetta," he said.

"I'm only asking as a citizen if I can have answers to these questions... his comments are vague and misleading."

Calls to Mr Deveaux seeking comment were not returned up to press time yesterday.

His letter to URCA reveals that he was initially told by Island FM heads that the radio show on which Mr Albury was a guest was recorded. However, he was later told that "the automatic recording machine had malfunctioned."

Mr Albury said he doesn't know why Mr Deveaux would want to sue him for asking questions.

He said: "I don't know what I said that upset him so greatly."

He added that Mr Deveaux has not answered two letters requesting a formal meeting between the two to discuss the issues connected with BPC and oil well drilling.

However, Mr Albury said he will not stop prodding Mr Deveaux for the answers that the Bahamian people demand from the government and the ones he said BPC are not prepared to answer.

"They (BPC) said they aren't commenting now or any time in the foreseeable future," he said.