A prospective Reform council candidate, initially rejected for racist social media posts, alleges he fell victim to Nigerian scammers. Graham Holland faced disqualification due to “inappropriate social media content” but was later allowed to proceed following the submission of new information by Reform.
Holland, contesting in the pivotal Bexley area in south-east London for Reform, reportedly reshared content suggesting Muslims were teaching children violence and aiming for dominance in a country. The retired Foreign Office worker, 81, recounted being deceived by scammers from Nigeria who took control of his Twitter account, disseminating offensive posts.
Despite Reform’s vetting team initially rejecting Holland for reposting concerning material, he was eventually chosen to run for the Blackfen and Lamorbey ward in Bexley. Holland maintained his innocence, claiming that evidence from his computer expert supported his assertion of being hacked by Nigerian scammers.
Reform’s leader defended the party’s handling of the vetting process, asserting improved efficiency in addressing such issues. This incident coincided with revelations of Reform recruiting individuals as “paper” candidates and uncovering objectionable viewpoints expressed by multiple Reform candidates recently.
A spokesperson for Reform UK confirmed that Holland passed the subsequent vetting process by presenting evidence proving he did not have control over the contentious social media account.
