JOHOR BARU: Johor MCA will lodge a complaint with the Election Commission (EC) over an election offence involving an alleged defamatory advertisement published in a Chinese daily.
Party secretary-general Datuk Chong Sin Woon said the advertisement failed to comply with Section 11(1)(c) of the Election Offences Act 1954 by not stating the names and addresses of its printer and publisher.
"The advertisement clearly refers to the election but does not state who printed or published it. This is a clear violation of the Election Offences Act 1954.
"Johor MCA will lodge a report with the EC soon and urge the commission to investigate and take action against those responsible," he told a press conference on Saturday (July 4).
Chong said the advertisement, which urged voters not to support MCA and instead vote for Pakatan Harapan, also contained defamatory and false claims.
"It falsely creates the impression that MCA has entered into a political pact with another party.
"These are false and defamatory allegations intended to mislead voters during the campaign period.
"We want the EC to investigate who published this advertisement and take action against the party or individual responsible," he said.
Chong also called on voters to reject such politics, stressing that the election is about choosing the state government.
"Instead of presenting their plans for Johor, they are playing up such issues and trying to create a negative impression of MCA to influence voters.
"This election is about choosing a government to lead Johor for the next five years. If this is all they have to offer after a week of campaigning, Johor voters should reject such politics," he said.
