EC to determine key GE14 dates after receiving dissolution notices

PUTRAJAYA: The Election Commission (EC) will hold a special meeting to determine the important dates for the 14th general election (GE14) after receiving notices of dissolution from the speakers of the Dewan Rakyat and respective State Legislative Assemblies.

EC chairman Tan Sri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said the EC had 10 days from the date of receipt of the notices to hold the special meeting.

The meeting would determine the key dates for GE14, such as the date to issue writs, the nomination of candidates, early voting, and the election date, he said.

“As long as we do not receive the notices from the speakers on the dissolution (we cannot convene the meeting), so we just wait for them,” he said when met by reporters after performing his Friday prayers at the Putra Mosque here.

Earlier Friday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced that the dissolution of Parliament would take effect tomorrow (April 7), paving the way for GE14.

Mohd Hashim did not rule out the possibility that the EC would hold the special meeting next week, and announce the key GE14 dates as soon as the meeting is over.

He said as enshrined in the Federal Constitution, the EC must hold GE14 within 60 days of the dissolution of Parliament.

When asked about messages doing the rounds on WhatsApp regarding the key dates of GE14, he said the messages were not true because the EC had yet to convene a meeting to determine the dates.

“These messages have been circulating since last year. I myself did not know when the Prime Minister would announce (the dissolution of Parliament prior to this).

“These dates have not been determined yet. It will be done at the EC meeting which will be held after we receive the notices,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mohd Hashim said the electoral roll for the fourth quarter of 2017 which contained names of 14,968,304 registered voters would be used for GE14. –Bernama