Cleaning up not only about removing the dead, EC told

(Harakah Daily) – PAS’s vocal Youth wing has reminded the Election Commission that electoral reforms were not limited to only removing names of deceased voters in the electoral rolls.

The wing’s head Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi stressed that a clean, fair and transparent election could only take place when there was a high sense of commitment from the ruling government for electoral reforms, including allowing the opposition and dissenting views airtime over national television.

“It starts with the freedom for political parties to campaign without being restricted by mind-boggling laws against the spirit of democracy such as being practised by UMNO,” Nasrudin said in a statement to Harakahdaily, and cited the existence of draconian laws such as the newly passed Peaceful Assembly bill, Official Secret Acts, Universities and University Colleges Act and  the Internal Security Act.

Yesterday, EC deputy chief Wan Ahmad Wan Omar (left) said the Commission was working with the National Registration Department to remove from the rolls the names of people who have died.

In response to Wan Ahmad’s guarantee that Malaysia would see the ‘most up-to-date electoral rolls’ for the 13th general election, Nasrudin called for more effort to clean up the electoral rolls besides working with the NRD.

According to Nasrudin, the EC must also clean up overlapping voters with identical and suspicious names, as well as those with identical Mykad numbers, and other instances revealed by PAS Youth this year.

“EC must also give guarantee that they will also clean up the election process so that it will not create doubts and suspicion to ensure transparency and fairness in election. Among others, the use of indelible ink and the abolishment of postal voting,” he added.