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Gibson returns to House

By TAMARA McKENZIE, Guardian Political Editor

Managing to evade the local and international press and absent from the Lower Chamber for more than a month following the death of US Celebrity Anna Nicole Smith, and since the publication of suggestive photos of him and the former Playboy Playmate, Golden Gates MP and former Minister of Immigration and Labour Shane Gibson returned to his seat in the House of Assembly on Wednesday. And upon adjournment, he informed The Guardian that he is still "friends" with Ms Smith's companion and lawyer Howard K Stern, saw nothing wrong with leaving repeated voicemail messages on Ms Smith's voicemail, and he still has an overwhelming support from his constituents, and even those affiliated with the Opposition Free National Movement (FNM).

"I'm fine and there is nothing like knowing that you are innocent," said Mr Gibson who was also accused of abusing his ministerial post when he admitted to fast-tracking a permanent residency visa for the US celebrity. He became the first Minister in Prime Minister Perry Christie's Cabinet to leave office under the pressure of a scandal that had rocked the party, divided the country and attracted an international media feeding frenzy not seen in almost two decades. "My family is fine and as a matter of fact, I've gotten excellent support from my family and I'm gonna be all right," Mr Gibson told The Guardian

"I think what I did in terms of resigning, I set a new precedent in The Bahamas where you have Members of Parliament who have gotten mixed up in all sorts of things in the past and never resign," Mr Gibson explained. "You have Members of Parliament who had outside kids while they were married," he continued. "Cameras can take pictures all the time, and so hopefully in the future when cameras take other pictures of other persons and it is not understood, we will see how they react at that time."

Mr Gibson in a televised interview last month revealed that the photos he took with Ms Smith were "innocent" and were actually taken by Ms Smith's companion, Howard K Stern. He added that he "did not remember" receiving any gifts from Ms Smith and "knew nothing" of the claims that circulated in the media of him receiving a Rolex watch from the celebrity who still remains popular after her death.

And when he resigned on Feb 18, Mr Gibson flatly denied that he had had a sexual relationship with Ms Smith and told the public that he was resigning because his wife, his parents and his entire family had suffered enough.

But just when the media thought the dust had settled for Mr Gibson, the TMZ.com website posted several phone messages left on the cell phone of Anna Nicole Smith some two weeks ago, which were reportedly made last December by the former Immigration and Labour Minister. Some calls were made around midnight from New Providence. Mr Gibson told The Guardian yesterday that if he cannot reach someone who he considers to be his friend, the "natural" thing to do is to call again and again if there is something "important" to discuss. " So I don't see the big deal," Mr Gibson said about the repeated calls. "If you have a three hour time difference and you are trying to catch somebody around 8 o'clock, what time would you call?" Mr Gibson asked in response to a question about calling Ms Smith around midnight.

Mr Gibson also admitted that he still kept in contract with the late Ms Smith's companion and lawyer Howard K Stern because he [Mr Stern] is considered to be a "friend." He declined, however, to inform The Guardian of whether or not his mother was still serving as nanny to six-month-old Dannielynn Hope Smith while her paternity case continues to play out in a Bahamian court.

Mr Gibson said that since his resignation, he has been assisting the PLP with its campaign and he has also stepped up efforts in his constituency with the introduction of various new programs. He added that since his resignation, he continues to receive the support of constituents and has "more support now than ever before."

"We have grown even closer over the past couple of weeks and I would say that I have more support now from people who I know to be FNM's," Mr Gibson said. "They [FNMs] came up to me and said 'I don't like what is happening. They see that there was a concerted effort to stray and put a twist to a story that absolutely was not true, and so I am now getting support from persons on the other side, simply because of what happened."