The children of one of Bermuda's top surgeons claim they are being emotionally abused by their father -- because he is failing to make regular child support payments.

And two of Dr. Mohammed Hamza's daughters might even have to put their education on hold because they can no longer afford to study unless their eye-surgeon father comes up with an outstanding maintenance payment of 30,000 ($45,000).

The children's mother, Susan Hamza, who split up with her husband five years ago, has no income and has had to spend a substantial share of her divorce settlement supporting her children.

Meanwhile Dr. Hamza, who runs a surgery on Point Finger Road, earns more than $1 million a year and still lives in the family's luxery home.

A court order forced him to make annual payments of 80,000 ($120,000) to support his four children, Nadia, 25, Sarrah, 23, Mohammed, 19, and Alia, 18.

But the 55-year-old doctor, who hit the headlines three years ago when he was found guilty of driving without due care and failing to stop after an accident, has put the payment order on hold, claiming his children's financial circumstances have changed since the order was first made and the decision should be re-assessed.

Although a hearing was held in July to see what new payment, if any, should be made, the matter had to be adjourned and so far a fresh date for the hearing has not been set.

While the case is still waiting to go to court Dr. Hamza is not making payments under the original court order. And that means that two of his children will be unable to start college courses in the UK later this month unless they can find some other way of paying the fees.

Nadia Hamza is hoping to take a post-graduate law course while Alia has won a place at South Bank University in London to do a drama degree.

Yesterday Dr. Hamza's second daughter, Sarrah, who is back on the Island having completed her studies, said: "Everything has been put on hold for the moment and that's putting Nadia and Alia's education in jeopardy.

"What we want to do is get my mother to pay one third...but she has no income and has only just qualified this July while he's earning hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"In the court case every single item was disputed -- and this is someone who claims he wants to support his children. The children should not be in a position where they have to comply. My father is still in arrears by 30,000 and that would pay for two academic years.

"It's as if he has to be pleased before we can get a simple basic need. It doesn't even have to go to court. It could be settled out of court if only he chose to recognise the needs of his children. It's a small price he has to pay for his life in Bermuda.

"He's in his present position because of the level of education he obtained and it would seem only reasonable to see his children do just as well. He's very much a sugar-coated lemon and people should know what goes on behind closed doors.'' Dr. Hamza, who originally comes from Libya, was educated in the UK before moving to Bermuda in 1981.

Yesterday Dr Hamza's lawyer, Gorgia Marshall, refused to discuss the case.

But she insisted that her client was prepared to do anything to help his children, a statement that his daughter described as "insulting''.

Mrs. Marshall also denied that either she or Dr. Hamza had been abusing the legal process in a bid to stall the case, claiming a new date for the hearing could not be set until Mrs. Hamza returned from England at Christmas.

But the attorney for Mrs. Hamza, Kieron Unwin, said that he had asked Mrs.

Marshall for a convenient court date in August but she had still not replied.

Dr. Hamza, who still lives in the family's luxury four bedroom home on West Side Road, Sandys, refused to comment on his daughter's allegations. When approached by a Royal Gazette reporter he at first demanded to know where he had got his information from. He later said that he would not comment on the matter after being advised by his lawyer.

CHILDREN CLD