‘By-election not a waste of funds’

PETALING JAYA: The question of public funds being wasted for a by-election does not arise in the case of the Rantau state seat, which the court just ruled as vacant, says the Election Commission (EC).

Its chairman Azhar Harun said there is no question of wastage if a by-election is called when an Election Court finds that an election is void.

“When an election is found to be void, there would not be a representative for that consti­tuency and therefore a by-election is necessary to elect one,” he said when contacted.

Azhar noted that there are 14 days to appeal the decision.

“A by-election must be called within 60 days from the receipt of a certificate from the Election Court with respect to its decision.

“The Court stated that no certificate will be issued until 14 days lapse from the day of the decision, to give an opportunity for any party to appeal to the Federal Court,” he said.

In his election petition, Dr Streram sought for a by-election to be held for the Rantau seat as its incumbent had not won the seat legitimately.

Electoral watchdog Bersih 2.0 welcomed the judgment delivered by judge Azimah Omar but also called for the Rantau returning officer to be charged for breach of duty.