KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has strongly denounced recent comments made by Opposition leader Mark Golding that they believe seemingly encourage voter fraud.

Golding told a political meeting in East Rural St Andrew over the weekend that comrades who voted in the 2011 election should cast their ballots in the upcoming polls, boldly stating that “even some who not alive, if dem can deal with it, no problem.”

In a statement on Monday, the JLP dubbed Golding’s statements as reckless, saying it seemingly encouraged casting votes in the name of deceased individuals.

The JLP added that such “a reckless statement amounts to the promotion of electoral fraud and poses a grave threat to the integrity of our democratic process.”

Dr Horace Chang, general secretary for the JLP shared that “Jamaica has made significant strides in securing free and fair elections, fostering a transparent and accountable electoral system that upholds the principles of democracy” and said Golding’s “alarming endorsement of such unethical practices raises serious concerns about his commitment to our nation’s democratic values.”

Chang went on to state that although Jamaicans should not be too surprised by Golding’s remarks, citizens should be disappointed at the Opposition’s “desperation to seize power at any cost.”

The JLP has since called on Golding to retract his statement and “unequivocally disavow any support for electoral fraud.”

In the meantime, two other organisations associated with the JLP; Young Jamaica and Generation 2000 have also expressed disappointment in Golding’s statements. In their statement on Monday, the G2K said it will not allow Golding to “drag Jamaica back to an unfortunate era many decades ago where the names of deceased people were used to unlawfully influence the outcome of elections” while Young Jamaica dubbed the Opposition leader’s remarks as inflammatory and counterproductive.”