PKR cries foul over mock voting for BN

But EC says the exercise among Orang Asli in Tapah, even if true, would be legitimate.

PETALING JAYA: Barisan Nasional rewarded indigenous people in Tapah with 5kg of rice each in return for casting mock ballots in favour of its candidates, PKR claimed today.

“Several weeks ago, the Department of Orang Asli Development (Jakoa) and Chenderiang assemblyman Mah Hang Soon ran a series of programmes in Orang Asli villages in Tapah,” Perak PKR treasurer Yap Yit Thong told FMT today.

“In the programme, the Orang Asli were given two homemade ballot papers similar to the ballot paper used in elections, and were forced to tick Barisan Nasional in full view of the Jakoa officers and Dr Mah.

“Those who ticked BN in both ballot papers were then given 5kg of rice as a reward.”

Yap said the Orang Asli had to return the marked ballot papers immediately to the officials, apparently so that no evidence of the exercise remained.

But some of the marked ballot papers wound up in Yap’s hands when several Orang Asli approached him to complain about the issue.

“We don’t know what BN’s purpose is,” Yap told FMT. “Maybe when it’s time for general election, BN will tell the Orang Asli, ‘You already voted for us’ or ‘We gave you the rice and you promised you would vote for us; so you must do so.’”

Yap said the mock election, if it did take place, was in violation of the Election Offenses Act and could be investigated as a crime.

The act states that any person who “without due authority prints any ballot paper or what purports to be or is capable of being used as a ballot paper at an election” could be imprisoned for up to two years or fined up to RM5,000 or suffer both penalties.

A person who “prints any advertisement, handbill, placard or poster which refers to an election and contains a reproduction of a ballot paper, or of what purports to be a ballot paper, to be used or likely to be used at such election” may face similar punishment.

Yap said he had yet to approach Jakoa or Mah over the issue, but was demanding that they give an explanation.

He also called on the Election Commission to question Jakoa and Mah.

“Dr Mah must resign as Chenderiang state assemblyman and executive council member of Perak for abusing his power,” he said.

‘Completely fine’
However, EC deputy director Wan Ahmad Wan Omar told FMT the alleged incident appeared to be a voter education programme rather than an attempt at vote buying or blackmail.

“This is the first time this issue has been raised with me, but from what you explained, it sounds perfectly acceptable and normal,” he said.

“A lot of political parties are doing mock elections. This is a form of voter education, by which they are educating people on how to vote.

“That is completely fine. The EC is in fact encouraging political parties, NGOs and concerned citizens to educate one another on how to vote.”

He said that the EC had been promoting voter education programmes for a while now, especially in light of the high percentage of spoilt votes in the 2008 general election.

As for allegations that the Orang Asli participants had to vote for BN’s candidates in the mock ballot, Wan Ahmad said that that was perfectly natural and to be expected.

“That is campaigning,” he said. “Any political party, whether from the government or the opposition, would do the same if they were teaching the public to vote. It doesn’t matter at all.

“To me, it just sounds like BN is conducting a voter education programme while campaigning at the same time.”

Wan Ahmad also said the rice was given to the Orang Asli outside the campaign period and thus was a completely acceptable form of donation.

“Only when a donation is given during the campaign period does it become an offence and can be seen as vote-buying,” he said.

EC: Go to the police

According to Wan Ahmad, that was precisely the reason why political parties were doling out donations and gifts before the dissolution of Parliament.

Similarly, producing mock ballot papers outside the campaign period would not be an offence unless the real ballot papers had already been revealed to the public, he said.

“The issue of political parties printing ballot papers to use as examples is normal. They do not know the colour of the ballot paper that will be used on polling day or the type of paper it will be printed on.

“The ballot paper’s appearance changes with every election and will only be revealed on polling day. It is, for now, a closely guarded secret.”

He said what Yap described as offences under the Election Offences Act would be offences only if committed on polling day or if the ballot paper’s appearance had been leaked.

However, he urged Yap to lodge a police report if he believed that Jakoa and Mah had committed crimes.

He said it would be of no use for Yap to lodge a report with the EC as it did not have any investigating power.