Over four million Malaysians yet to register as voters

SHAH ALAM: Some 4.1 million Malaysians have yet to register as voters as of last month.

Election Commission (EC) chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said they made up of various races, with the majority around 21 years old.

"If they do not register as voters, there is no point talking about the country's political situation on social media. What is spoken cannot be translated into votes," said Mohd Hashim after launching the Voter Registration Campaign at Kompleks Media Kumpulan Karangkraf here on Friday.

Mohd Hashim said young people did not register as voters for several reasons, including a lack of understanding about the importance of "people's power."

He added that other reasons included an absence of registration facilities, especially in rural areas. He said the three-month campaign would be mobilised to get youths in rural areas to register.

"The EC will focus on areas where the people have problems to leave their place to register as voters, such as rural areas," said Mohd Hashim.

He also urged Malaysians to exercise their voting rights by coming out to cast their votes on polling day, saying that the highest voter turnout in local elections at this point was at 75 percent of the constituency.

 "For example, in the recent Sarawak state election, only 68 percent of the voters cast their votes," he added. - Bernama.