No need to amend Constitution to use indelible ink, say experts

KUALA LUMPUR - There is no need to amend the Federal Constitution to pave the way for the use of indelible ink in the general election, legal experts said.

Speaking on the second day of the public hearing by the Parliamentary Select Committee on electoral reform, former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said the system can be implemented only by changing the election regulation.

"Absolutely no need...the only thing needed is to change the (Election Commission's) regulation, not the constitution; and this can be done under Section 16 of the Election Act which allows the EC to make regulations, and then put it before the Parliament and get it done," she said to a question from a committee member.

Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad had earlier asked Ambiga for her views on the matter, including the possibility of the election results being challenged in court should the system be introduced without amending the Federal Constitution.

The Election Commission (EC) scrapped the indelible ink plan for the March 8, 2008 general election following a legal advice.

Bar Council president Lim Chee Wee expressed confidence that the system could be implemented.

"I agree that there is no guarantee that my legal view is correct, but I am 99.9 per cent confident that there is no need to amend the constitution to use indelible ink," he said.

BERNAMA