CASTRIES, St. Lucia (CMC):

Leader of the Opposition St. Lucia Labour Party (SLP), Dr. Kenny Anthony, has called for the resignation of Economic Planning Minister Ausbert d'Auvergne, charging that he has shamed the country and must go.

Dr. Anthony yesterday also called on Prime Minister Sir John Compton to remove d'Auvergne if he did not resign within 15 days. The SLP leader at a public meeting had linked the minister to the activities of two convicted criminals in the U.S.

"There are deeper issues here and the time has come for Mr. d'Auvergne to make an exit and I expect him to resign in the next 15 days," he said. He charged that d'Auvergne had abused his office when he testified in a US Court in February this year in defence of one of the convicted men, his cousin Marcus Alcindor.

The planning minister said that while he has not heard Anthony's full statement, he has contacted lawyers based on the information released, with a view to taking legal action against the SLP leader. But Anthony said he was not concerned about the threat since his statements were factual.

"On what grounds could Mr. d'Auvergne possibly take me to court. It is a fact that convicted criminal Riley Graham was a business associate of the Minister, and that he was engaged with him in attempting to construct a hotel in St. Lucia with a casino," Dr. Anthony said. "It is a fact that Marcus Alcindor is a cousin of Mr. d'Auvergne and he too was involved in the project as an engineer."

The former Prime Minister charged that St. Lucia was in crisis and neither the Prime Minister nor Acting Prime Minister could resolve the situation. He said members of the Government had continued to tarnish the country's reputation.

"We cannot continue like this. The reputation of the country has been tarnished, it has been compromised and nowhere in the world would someone remain as a Minister of a Government when he has had the sort of links that Mr. d'Auvergne has had with a notorious criminal," he said.