MP Darius Tucker yesterday claimed he quit the United Bermuda Party because he didn't want to put pressure on his colleagues who were due to discipline him.

Mr. Tucker refused to speak to The Royal Gazette — offering no explanation why — but told ZBM news last night his friends in the Caucus Procedures Committee were in an uncomfortable position.

"How could I put my friends through this?" he said on the television.

The former Sports, Youth and Recreation Shadow Minister resigned shortly before he was due to explain his decision to break a three line whip and fail to vote for a motion of no confidence against Premier Ewart Brown's Government.

He told ZBM he did not vote on principle, because Opposition Leader Kim Swan had failed in his promise to attract enough Progressive Labour Party or Independent votes to win the motion.

Mr. Tucker claimed if the motion had passed Mr. Swan was set to knock on Governor Sir Richard Gozney's door and tell him: "I have the power."

When we spoke to Mr. Tucker on Sunday, he declined to comment, saying he would be sending a statement. That statement never came.

On Monday, he hung up on a Royal Gazette reporter without commenting at any length.

The rest of the week, he has refused to answer his cell phone or respond to messages.

He refused to comment again yesterday morning, saying he would send us a statement within an hour and would answer questions after that.

However, he then refused to answer his phone while, despite Mr. Tucker's work colleagues repeatedly saying he was putting the finishing touches to his press statement, it never came.

The Hamilton South MP, who joins fellow former Opposition politician Wayne Furbert as an Independent, described Dr. Brown as a go-getter during the marathon no confidence debate on Friday and Saturday. The motion failed by 22 votes to 11, with all PLP MPs refusing to back it.

Mr. Tucker was suspended from the Shadow Cabinet along with Shadow Attorney General Mark Pettingill, who abstained from the vote.

Last night, a UBP spokesman said Mr. Tucker "should do the honourable thing — resign and cause a by-election for the sake of the voters of Hamilton South".

The spokesman explained that Mr. Tucker was "elected under the flag of the United Bermuda Party" with the support of many volunteers and voters, and he should respect their "effort, trust and support".

"We've received scores of calls from UBP supporters who have expressed disgust at Mr. Tucker's actions in supporting the Brown Government," the spokesman continued. "We have struggled to understand Mr. Tucker's thinking over the events of the past few days.

"Presumably the voters of Hamilton South are also struggling to understand. His comments to the media about the no confidence motion have not made sense."

The spokesman concluded: "No one went into that debate with any certainty it would succeed, but all were committed to debating the principles at stake — due process, consultation and the integrity of the Bermuda Constitution, which was breached by Dr. Brown.

"The no confidence motion reflected the seriousness with which we regarded the situation. It is unfortunate Mr. Tucker did not tell his colleagues he did not share their concerns."