Bersih's recommendations for Chini by-election in midst of Covid-19

Electoral watchdog Bersih has made several recommendations to the Election Commission (EC) in conducting the Chini by-election that is set for July 4 in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We believe that the democratic system should proceed but at the same time preventive measures to curb this pandemic must be taken by all parties, especially the EC,” Bersih said in a statement today.

They recommended that the EC extend the nomination period for five days and candidates should be allowed to submit their nomination form online or by hand during this period in order to avoid public gatherings.

If the candidates choose to submit their nomination form by hand, there must be a limit of four people from each candidate. The EC can then announce the list of accepted candidates by issuing a media statement, they said.

Amendments can be made by the candidates if there were any errors in filling out the nomination form by resubmitting the form within the five-day nomination period.

Completed nomination forms must be published officially, with personal information concealed so that other candidates can object if issues arise. 

The duration of the objection can be set for two days after the closing of the nomination and a written objection can be sent to the EC during this period, Bersih said.

During the campaign itself, Bersih recommended that the government should give equal airtime to all candidates including oppositions to appear on mainstream media such as RTM and Bernama. This should include a live debate among the candidates.

“This should be done even without the Covid-19 threat that we are faced with, nevertheless this measure should be taken now as conventional campaigns such as public talks should be stopped,” they said.

It is important for the EC to ensure all candidates can campaign on a level playing field as ceramahs (talks) are no longer possible due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Aside from the prohibition of public or group talks, Bersih said the canvassing of votes must be done with strict regulations such as following social distancing rules, wearing face masks and with not more than four people in a group.

Meanwhile, for polling day, Bersih said they welcome the EC’s recommendations on a voting schedule for voters to be at the polling centre. 

This would avoid a concentration of voters’ turnout at any one time. This information would be included in the voter's card that the EC will send to all the voters before polling day.

In order to further avoid the congestion of voters in polling centres, Bersih suggested the EC open more polling centres and polling streams.

“EC can emulate how Indonesia open their polling centres and the centres need not necessarily be in schools. It could also be opened in residential areas or villages,” they said.

Tents could also be set up to supplement the polling streams, they added.

Polling time could also be extended, from 8am to 8pm, instead of the usual 8am to 5pm.

Voters who are Covid-19 patients or those who are still in quarantine could be registered as postal voters so they may cast their votes via postal votes.

Meanwhile, voters for the Chini by-election who live in other states and wish to return home to cast their votes should be allowed to travel inter-state to fulfil their duty and rights as voters or they should be able to register as postal voters.

Bersih also said the EC must prepare a screening station at every polling centre to screen the voters before they can proceed to vote.

Those with a body temperature above 37.5 degree Celsius must be directed to a special stream to cast their vote, they said.

The EC also needs to provide face masks and disposable gloves to voters before they can enter the polling stream to cast their votes. 

The gloves must be discarded on their way out. Hand sanitisers must also be prepared at all polling centres and streams.

The polling centres themselves must be disinfected a few days before the polling day, like what was done in South Korea before their recent parliamentary elections.

“Although we are still facing the Covid-19 pandemic, it must not be used as an excuse to stop the democratic process in our country.

“Countries such as South Korea has proven that the electoral process can be conducted rather successfully.

“What is important is the cooperation between all parties. We also have an excellent and world-class health taskforce that are prepared to assist and provide guidelines on the best measures to conduct the election,” Bersih said.

The Chini state seat by-election was called after the death of incumbent Abu Bakar Harun on May 7.

The polling day is on July 4, with nomination day of June 20. - Mkini