Bermudians for Referendum (BFR) said Premier Alex Scott was out of line for suggesting an Independence referendum should be held alongside ? or after ? a General Election.

BFR member Michael Marsh added Premier Scott had ?not got the message? from more than 17,000 of Bermuda?s registered voters who were adamant that an Independence-deciding referendum should have nothing whatever to do with any election.

?I feel the Premier was out of line. He needs to wake up that the people are the sovereign of the nation and not the Premier,? Mr. Marsh said on Friday. ?It?s a ridiculous idea. I can?t understand what the Premier is afraid of.?

At a Press conference at Cabinet on Thursday, Premier Scott reiterated that a UK Government Minister had put an option before Government, so it could come up with the unique position of holding a referendum during or after an election and this was only one option to be discussed throughout the year in public consultations. However, Mr. Marsh was unhappy about the potential Independence-deciding scenario.

And having a referendum during an election made no sense in his view because Independence would be clouded with other issues.

But Mr. Marsh was also dubious whether it would be held a year after an election.

?Politicians cannot be trusted as a general rule of thumb to carry out promises and whether such an event would take place after a year is up to them. How will we ever know there will be a referendum??

He conceded Premier Scott was in a difficult position.

?The exact wording of the petition indicates they do not want a referendum to have anything to do with an election,? Mr. Marsh said. ?If the Premier is saying that he is committed to a referendum on Independence, then he has at last listened to the will of the people through this petition. But there is major confusion about when.?

But Mr. Marsh questioned why Premier Scott could not commit to having an Independence-deciding referendum before a General Election.

In addition, Mr. Marsh accused the Bermuda Independence Commission (BIC) of being one-sided while in contrast, BFR was mutually inclusive.

And Mr. Marsh hinted that BFR could soon be launching a new petition ? this time pressing for a referendum that took place before a General election.

Mr. Marsh also said Premier Scott had not got the message of the Initiative and Referendum Institute ? a non-profit and non-partisan research and educational organisation based out of the University of Southern California ? which said referendums should always be held around six weeks before a General Election.

?There are many disadvantages he did not mention. He is not providing a fair, two-sided position,? he said. ?We can only fight on to reflect the views of Bermuda?s voters.?

Referendums gave people the ultimate freedom to choose, he said, and were examples of people power, rather than Government power ? and were powers BFR hoped to eventually enshrine in the Constitution.

Premier Scott could not be reached for comment last night.