EC proposes mobile ballot boxes

PUTRAJAYA: Elderly or disabled voters who find it hard to get to polling centres at the next general election may have the ballot box taken to their flats or kampung instead.

The Election Commission (EC) is considering introducing mobile ballot boxes which will be taken to places where there are many voters with mobility issues..

Commission chairman Tan Sri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said another measure the EC is mulling is to allow more voters who would be on work duty on polling day of the 14th general election (GE14) to be included in the category of postal voters.

They include doctors, nurses, ambulance drivers, firemen, prison warders and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency personnel.

“Everything we do is guided by the Constitution and Election Act (1958), so any new measure which involves amending the Act must be brought to Parliament for deliberation.

“However, if the proposal involves only administrative measures, it can be brought up to the EC Panel for a decision. Like these two proposals, which we should consider to help voters,” Mohd Hashim said.

At present, postal voting is only allowed for eligible overseas voters, public servants working abroad, full-time university students overseas and their spouses, EC workers, media personnel, as well as police and armed forces personnel.

Mohd Hashim said several countries have mobile ballot boxes which are taken around and placed at locations, including at apartments to make it easier for voters to cast their ballots.

“Let’s say there are three candidates contesting for the Parliament seat of Putrajaya, each candidate’s representative can accompany the EC staff as we take the ballot box from one apartment to the next.”

The EC chairman said the mobile box would be more useful in rural areas where some elderly or disabled voters live far from polling centres.

On expanding the groups eligible for postal voting, Mohd Hashim said the EC had received applications from various government agencies urging the Commission to grant the privilege to their staff.

He said the response by Malay-sians overseas to postal voting was very good, adding that the current system of balloting would be maintained for GE14.

Mohd Hashim said 3,732,188 Malaysians eligible to vote had not registered, most of them between 21-39 years of age.

There are 14,622,640 voters on the current EC electoral list which has the names of voters who registered until the end of June this year.

He urged those who have not registered to do so as soon as possible, so that their names could be included in the third quarter electoral roll update that will be gazetted in the next few months.