THE Tanjung Piai by-election date does not give any political party an advantage, and was decided after several factors were taken into consideration, said Azhar Azizan Harun.
The Election Commission chairman said the agency has no intention of inconveniencing Umno or MCA, which will hold their party assemblies during the polls period.
“Any inconvenience to these parties is regretted,” he said in a statement today.
Immediately after the EC announced that polling will be held on November 16 and nomination on November 2, MCA president Wee Ka Siong said they clashed with his party and Umno’s general assemblies.
“Many are asking why the EC is holding the by-election so late. I would like to know if it is really a coincidence,” he said on Facebook.
Umno’s assembly will be held from November 13 to 16, and MCA’s, November 2 and 3.
Azhar said the EC has 60 days from the time it is notified of a seat vacancy to hold a by-election, and in the case of Tg Piai, the latest date for polls to be held is November 23.
Explaining the decision, he said Johor’s weekend is Friday and Saturday.
“The by-election should not be held on a Friday, as it is compulsory for Muslim men to attend Friday prayers. Sunday is a working day in the state. So, the best option is to hold the by-election on a Saturday.”
If polling was to be held on October 19, he said, nomination would fall on October 5, which is not suitable as it is Hari Hol, a day of remembrance for previous Johor sultans.
He said holding the by-election on October 26 would interfere with preparations for Deepavali, which falls on October 27.
“If nomination was fixed for October 19, polling would be on November 2, which is still in the Deepavali period.
“The EC does not want to hold the by-election on November 23, the last date for it to be held.
“We’re setting it seven days before the deadline in case of any untoward incident that could result in the by-election not being held on November 16 and forced to be moved later.”
The Tg Piai federal seat fell vacant following the death of Dr Md Farid Md Rafik, 42, on September 21 due to heart complications. He won the constituency for Pakatan Harapan in the general election last year.
Farid, who was also a deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, polled 21,255 votes to beat Wee Jeck Seng of Barisan Nasional, who got 20,731 votes, and PAS’ Nordin Othman (2,962).
MCA president says Tg Piai by-election dates unfair to BN
MCA president Wee Ka Siong has accused the Election Commission of bias in its setting of dates for the Tanjung Piai by-election.
He said MCA might postpone its annual general meeting as a result as the dates on which it was scheduled, November 2 and 3 coincided with nomination day.
Wee said the campaign period and polling date in November also clashed the Umno AGM on November 13 to 16.
The EC today announced November 16 as polling day for the parliamentary seat in Johor. Nominations will take place on November 2 and early voting, Nov 12.
“Is this coincidence? How exact the dates are!” Wee wrote on Facebook moments after news broke about the by-election dates.
“This will be a challenge for MCA and Umno to make adjustments to face this challenge.
“For MCA, this was expected and the party central committee is willing to postpone its annual general meeting if there is a clash with the by-election date.”
Wee said many were curious as to why the EC had fixed the by-election on such a late date when the seat had fallen vacant on September 21 following the death of its incumbent, Md Farid Md Rafik of Pakatan Harapan-Bersatu.
“Many are asking why the EC is holding the by-election so late. I would like to know if it is really coincidence,” he said.
There are a number of important dates this month, such as the launch of the government’s Shared Prosperity Vision on October 5 and the tabling of the national budget for 2020 in the Dewan Rakyat on October 11.
From October 14 to 17, the first phase of the SPM examinations will be held. The second phase will be held from November 5 to 28.
Schools usually serve as polling centres during elections.
MCA is hoping Barisan Nasional will allow it to try again for the Tanjung Piai federal seat on the basis of its track record. Until the last election last year, it had held the constituency since it was created in 2003.
BN lost the seat for the first time to PH in a three-cornered contest last year with PAS in the fray.
– https://www.themalaysianinsight.com/
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