Sinn Fein is involved in a voting fraud on a massive scale in Northern Ireland, Ulster Unionist Party leader David Trimble said today. But Sinn Fein president Mr Gerry Adams hit back at Mr Trimble's claim, saying: "Well he would say that."
With Sinn Fein and the UUP desperately competing in a number of key constituencies in the June 7th British general election, Mr Trimble said Sinn Fein's abuse of the electoral system had gone unchecked.
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It involved the use of postal and proxy votes, said Mr Trimble, who has threatened to quit over decommissioning at the end of June as First Minister of the Northern Ireland executive.
"There is every reason to believe it is happening on a massive scale with regard to the seats Sinn Fein is targeting," he said.
However, one electoral officer has been suspended amid republican claims of a cover-up involving inquiries into the distribution of copied postal votes to Unionists in advance of the election being called.
Sinn Fein president Mr Gerry Adams, who was touring West, hit back at Mr Trimble's claim, saying: "Well he would say that."
He said he wrote yesterday to the Chief Electoral Officer asking why a senior electoral official had been suspended.
It might be that the man was suspended for reasons which were nothing to do with this election but were connected with a recent court case which showed that there was some malpractice which did not involve Sinn Fein.
"If it had involved Sinn Fein you could be sure that it would have been shouted from the rooftops," Mr Adams said.
"The people who benefited from that electoral malpractice were the UUP candidates West of the Bann."
He said Mr Trimble should "put his own house in order" before lecturing other parties.
PA