EVERYONE in my family eligible to vote, did.
Most found the process easy.
Several friends testified so as well.
They expressed kudos to the Election Commission (EC) for the seamlessness of the process.
My wife and I are in our late 70s and arrived at our polling station just before the time designated for our voting channel – but lo and behold, the queue for it was at least 50m long, and all seniors, too.
After nearly two hours, we arrived at the holding tent which had at least 50 people – social distancing was hardly possible though almost everyone was wearing masks.
It was heartening to see all these senior citizens remaining patient just to exercise their prerogative to select a member of Parliament.
Of course, there were plenty of complaints about the shabby treatment.
A political party observer who happened by the tent was roundly roasted.
Being a volunteer, he was the wrong target but no one from the EC appeared for us to vent our anger on.
Finally, after two and a half hours of tested patience we dipped our forefingers in purple ink, marked our ballots, dropped them in the box and went home, exhausted – no thanks to the EC.
We learned later that our channel had been frozen for more than an hour owing to the large crowd but nobody at the station bothered to inform us.
And apparently, many decided to go home without casting their votes.
A real shame.
We thoroughly sympathise with the people of Baram, Sarawak, who had to queue in floodwater as well as folks in Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, who had to endure the muddy football field upon which the polling station tents had been erected.
Perhaps there were mishaps in other constituencies that haven’t been reported.
By the time we have to vote again in the next elections, more than likely there will be many more senior citizens.
Besides ensuring a smooth process throughout the country for everyone, the EC must cater more appropriately to this group in particular.
SALLEH HARUN Kuala Lumpur
