A former senior tourism figure has backed calls for Bermuda Resort Hotels (BRH) to be banned from bidding to run Stonington Beach Hotel because of alleged conflicts of interest.

Jenefer Brimmer, who worked for the Department of Tourism in New York and was a reservations manager and front office manager at Elbow Beach and Sonesta Beach hotels, said BRH president Billy Griffith has “inside knowledge” of the running of the Government-owned hotel.

But the claim was strongly denied yesterday by BRH owner Naval Mehra, who said his company had no advantage over other bidders and Mr. Griffith had nothing to do with the application.

Every company interested in running the hotel was given the same information, he added.

Mr. Griffith sat on the hospitality board of Bermuda College, which oversees Stonington, and as former president of Bermuda Hotel Association (BHA) also sat on the College board.

In addition, Mr. Griffith, was - until his term of office as BHA president ended last month - co-chair of the public-private sector Bermuda Alliance for Tourism. He also sits on the Bermuda Tourism Board.

BRH and John Jefferis, the former general manager of Elbow Beach, are short-listed to take over the running of Stonington, which is used to train Bermudians in the hospitality industry.

A joint committee of the Departments of Tourism and Education is looking at the contract and is expected to announce the winner by the end of October.

Two weeks ago, PK Patnaik, whose company Montibello Foods teamed up with Bermuda-based Mega Contracting Services to unsuccessfully bid for the contract, called on BRH to be eliminated from the process because of Mr. Griffith.

“Mr. Griffith has had all the inside information for about five years about the running of Stonington so how can you allow his firm to put in a bid for the property?” Ms Brimmer told The Royal Gazette.

“It is certainly a conflict of interest. And the Harmony Club (which is owned by BRH and managed by Mr. Griffith) uses the beach at Stonington for its guests.

“I totally agree with Mr. Patnaik that it is a conflict of interest. Mr. Griffith has all the inside information which the other companies do not have.”

Mr. Mehra, whose BRH owns the Harmony Club, Surf Side, and the Wharf executive hotel, flatly denied yesterday that his company has any advantage because it employs Mr. Griffith.

“The company is owned 100 percent by me and Mr. Griffith has had nothing to do with the Stonington bid,” said Mr. Mehra.

“Billy Griffith seems to be being made a scapegoat because he volunteered his time at the College and the Tourism Board when he was asked to do so by the industry. We shouldn't be punishing people for volunteering their time.

“Everyone who has bid has been given the exact same information such as the hotel's financial statements, so Billy has no information that is not a matter of public record or has been given to everyone else.

“In any case, the College has no responsibility for the decision. It has been taken away from the College and will be taken by the Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Education.

“Billy Griffith might not be involved in Stonington if we win. There might be a different person. It will be my decisions completely, but in terms of Stonington, we have no advantage at all.”