.

He insisted that the appointment of Lt. Col. William White came after a "fair" process that considered each candidate's strengths and weaknesses and he chastised Works & Engineering and Housing Minister David Burch for "misrepresenting the truth" to the public.

"Nothing could be further from the truth," Mr. Madeiros said. "During the process we looked at every aspect that was required for the position and every potential candidate. No candidate met every requirement. They all had their strengths and their weaknesses.

"His statements were incorrect and inappropriate. But the Minister has a tendency to do as he feels, to say whatever he wants to say ? and he's not held accountable."

Col. White was named the new Regiment CO in February, selected from a short list of three candidates including Majors Marc Telemaque and Brian Gonsalves. He was sworn into the post, taking over command from Lt. Col. Eddie Lamb, during an official ceremony held at the National Sports Centre last Saturday.

This week Sen. Burch complained the selection had been compromised because Governor Sir John Vereker broke a 40-year tradition and placed a civilian, rather than a former Commanding Officer, at the head of the Defence Board. The Board serves as an advisory body to the Governor who ultimately determines the appointment of each of the Regiment's Commanding Officers.

Col. Burch told the Senate that the wrong person had been chosen, that "the person who won every contest they had is not the CO today", and as a result, the Governor should be recalled as "he is the ultimate one who has made a decision that runs contrary to the recommendations of the Board".

Contacted yesterday, Government House said it preferred to "rise above" such debate.

However, the comments were described as "inappropriate" and "inaccurate" by Mr. Madeiros, who questioned why Sen. Burch waited months after Col. White was named as Col. Lamb's successor before questioning the appointment.

"Nobody 'won' everything. To suggest that is ludicrous. It's nonsense. I can't even imagine that the Minister believes that. The announcement was made nearly four months ago. He's had plenty of time to express his opinion.

"But aside from that, I think his comments were inappropriate and, quite frankly, a misrepresentation of the truth."

He explained that the Defence Board gave its recommendation to the Governor on who it felt was best suited for the role, as did the outgoing Commanding Officer ? in this instance, Col. Lamb.

"The Governor doesn't have to take our recommendation," Mr. Madeirossaid. "We are an advisory group. The Governor takes the information and determines whether to support our recommendation. In this case, he supported the Board's recommendation. (Sen. Burch is) wrong in his conclusions and wrong to suggest the Governor made the decision contrary to the Board's recommendation."

Asked whether he agreed with Sen. Burch that the Defence Board would be better served by a chairman with a military background, Mr. Madeiros pointed out that many of the Board members fit that bill.

"He's entitled to his opinion but in saying that he's doing a big disservice to the other members of the Defence and the Promotions Boards, many of whom have long affiliations with the Bermuda Regiment and have served with (entities) overseas," he said before highlighting several members including a retired Colonel from the US Army, a retired Colonel from the Bermuda Regiment, two retired Majors and a retired Sergeant Major.

"What he's suggesting is that on the Promotions Board and the Defence Board, nobody there is credible," he said. "It's not just about me. To suggest that because I'm the chairman is a reflection on the quality of the participants is ludicrous and a disservice to the individuals who are members of those boards."

This newspaper sent an e-mail to Sen. Burch, a former Regiment CO himself, yesterday asking why he had waited so long to express his opinion on the selection process and whether he considered his comments might undermine the position of the new CO. We also asked which of the candidates he felt should have been selected for the position. He did not reply.

Earlier this week he told the Senate: "This current process in my view has been subjected to political ? with a small 'p' ? and personal preference interference to the detriment of the country and detriment of the Bermuda Regiment.

"It is certainly not a criticism of the current CO who is caught up in the mix. But what it does throw up is that, in Bermuda in 2006, you can have someone who wins at every turn of the process and still doesn't get the prize because people intercede."

He continued: "You will probably not see the negative effect on the Regiment immediately but you will most certainly see it when it comes to re-engagements at the end of this year when people will decide that they will express their own views."

Such comments were "unfortunate", said Mr. Madeiros, who expressed his hope they would not prove too damaging to the new CO.

"To come out and say everything he said, and then say he would support the new CO, that his comments were not meant to disparage the new CO ? did he truly believe that? He definitely has not made it easy for him. And as I listened to the talk shows this morning, there are people who believe what this man says."

The Bermuda Regiment did not respond to our request for comment on the matter.