Fraser dismisses vote-buying accusations

Third District Representative Julian Fraser has categorically dismissed the notion that he was ever involved in vote-buying, insisting that this has played no role in his re-election over the years.

In a recent interview, the veteran legislator pointed to the transfer of assistance grants from legislators to the Social Development Department and commented that residents may still be feeling the proverbial pinch.

Fraser argued that the nearly $2 million in funding previously disbursed by lawmakers, was going directly to seniors and the less fortunate and also suggested that lawmakers have a better understanding of residents who are in need of such grants.

“No matter you hear the talk out there about giving money for votes and all that kind of stuff. Well, okay. So, we didn’t have the money for the votes,” Fraser said. “Take a guy like myself for instance. You want to claim that I was using it all these years for votes? Okay, so I didn’t have it this time. And what happened?”

He added: “You can see it’s a farce. It’s a farce. These people relied on this kind of money for as small as it was. It was still a big thing for them.”

Days ahead of the just-concluded elections, former Territorial At-Large Representative Shereen Flax-Charles contended that persons were soliciting votes from seniors and differently-abled residents in Virgin Gorda by offering monetary incentives.