BALAKONG: Results for the Balakong by-election will likely be released between 9pm and 10pm on Saturday (Sept 8), says Election Commission (EC) Secretary Datuk Mohamed Elias Abu Bakar.
On his rounds inspecting four voting centres in Balakong with commission members Datuk Abdul Aziz Khalidin and Datuk Bala Singam Karupiah, Mohamed Elias said voter turnout in Balakong, as of 12pm, was only at 25%.
“Everything is going smoothly and is orderly, but we want to urge voters to come out and vote.
“They have until 5.30pm to cast their votes,” he said.
The EC is targeting a turnout of 70% for Balakong and Seri Setia, and Mohamed Elias said they were “hopeful” this target could be achieved.
To this end, the EC is working with the information department of the Communications and Multimedia Ministry to remind voters in various languages to cast their vote in today’s by-elections by deploying vans equipped with amplifiers.
“The vans will keep broadcasting till 4.30pm today,” the EC secretary said.
Referring to an incident where the media was barred from entering the SMK Cheras Perdana voting centre, Mohamed Elias clarified that media personnel were not barred from entering the centres.
“We have always been clear about our orders.
“The media is allowed to enter the voting centres but they cannot enter the voting streams,” he said.
He added that the issue had been cleared up and apologised for the misunderstanding. – THE STAR
By-elections: Voter turnout around 30 percent as at 1pm
Voter turnout for the twin by-elections as at 1pm stands at 28 percent for Balakong and 31 percent for Seri Setia, according to the Election Commission.
Earlier, Bernama reported that EC deputy chairman Othman Mahmood was urging registered voters to come out to cast their votes early to avoid congestion at the polling centres, following reports from polling centres of low turnout and a slow voting pace.
“We were told that as at 10am today, there were not many people at the polling centres including in the Seri Setia state constituency.
“Maybe due to the weekend, many take the opportunity to rest earlier in the morning and take their time to go to the polling centres.
“For those who have the time, this is the best time for them to go and cast their votes because the weather at the moment is quite good while the situation at the polling centres is still not congested,” he told reporters after making a visit at the Politeknik Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah polling centre in Shah Alam earlier today.
Awareness efforts
Meanwhile, Othman said the EC and the Information Department had made more announcements asking the public to come out to vote.
Six Information Department vehicles had been dispatched to locations where there was a high concentration of people in both constituencies for the past three days to make announcements on polling.
“Three vehicles were assigned to make the announcements in the Seri Setia constituency while another three were sent to Balakong.
“At the same time, we also collaborate with all print and electronic media operators to make the announcements…we hope that this way will persuade more people to come out to vote,” he said.
The by-election for the state seats of Seri Setia and Balakong sees straight fights with Halimey Abu Bakar from Pakatan Harapan being challenged by PAS candidate Dr Halimah Ali in Seri Setia, while Harapan candidate Wong Siew Ki faces MCA’s Tan Chee Teong in Balakong.
The by-election in the Seri Setia state constituency is being held following the death of incumbent Shaharuddin Badaruddin on July 2 due to colon cancer while the Balakong by-election follows the death of incumbent Eddie Ng Tien Chee in a road accident on July 20.
In the 14th general election, Shaharuddin (Seri Setia) won with a majority of 19,372 votes and Ng (Balakong) retained his seat with a majority of 35,538 votes. – MKINI
THE STAR / MKINI
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