Syed Saddiq: Harapan agrees to opposition offer on Under-18 bill but needs time

PARLIAMENT | The government agrees in principle with the proposal of opposition MPs that Article 119 (1) of the Federal Constitution include automatic voter registration for 18-year-old Malaysian citizens.

However, Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman (photo, above) said the proposal could not be absorbed into tomorrow's proposed amendment to lower the voting age from 21 to 18.

"In principle, we agree with the terms and I have informed them (opposition) during the preliminary session of the day," he told reporters at the Parliament lobby today.

Syed Saddiq was commenting on the conditional offer made by opposition chief Ismail Sabri Yaakob to support the government's proposal to amend the Federal Constitution to reduce the eligibility of voting age from 21 years to 18 years but only if the amendments allow for the automatic registration of voters.

On Monday, PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man also said lawmakers from his party will only vote in favour of the amendment, which needs a two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat if certain conditions are met.

Syed Saddiq, who is also Muar MP, added that the matter of automatic voter registration was included in Pakatan Harapan's GE14 manifesto.

He said the terms of automatic registration should be examined as some names of voters who died several years ago are still in the voting system.

Syed Saddiq also cited issues with those who are in prison for criminal offences and thus unable to vote.

The proposed amendment to the Federal Constitution to lower the voting age limit will be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat tomorrow.

Support from two-thirds of parliamentarians is needed for the motion to be passed which will require bipartisan support. - Mkini