KUCHING: The Election Commission (EC) needs to extend postal voting to those from Sabah and Sarawakian voters in the peninsula for the general elections, say politicans.
They should be allowed to register as postal voters as it was costly and time-consuming for them to travel back to their constituencies to vote, said Sarawak Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah
“Armed forces, police and EC personnel on duty can vote via post.
“Similarly, the EC can consider allowing Sarawakians in the peninsula to register as postal voters and vice versa,” he told reporters after opening the Malaysia Inbound Chinese Association’s domestic tourism campaign yesterday.
Abdul Karim said the EC could implement such postal voting if it had the political will to do so.
“There are many eligible Sarawakian voters in Peninsular Malaysia. For them to vote, they need to buy flight tickets and take leave.
“Things like this need to be looked into to ensure all citizens can carry out their responsibilities. Don’t make it difficult for them,” he said.
Abdul Karim’s call comes after incumbent Bandar Kuching MP Kelvin Yii made a similar request on Sunday.
Yii had urged the EC to implement reforms such as postal or absentee voting for Sarawakian and Sabahan voters in other parts of the country.
