Extend campaign period to 21 days, Bersih urges

 

Bersih has called for a minimum 21-campaign period to ensure most postal ballots return by polling day.

"With the implementation of Undi18, automatic voter registration and the right to be a postal voter extended to all Malaysians living overseas, the EC (Election Commission) must allow a minimum of 21-day campaign period so that most postal ballots can return by polling day.

"Otherwise, it would be meaningless to allow overseas voters the right but deny them the time to participate," said Bersih in a statement today.

This comes as the EC is set to announce the polling date for the 15th general election (GE15) on Oct 20.

On Oct 11, Global Bersih also made a similar call as overseas Malaysians still need to take the additional step of registering as postal voters to be able to vote by post from abroad despite the introduction of automatic registration of voters.

The past few by-elections and state elections saw the EC set a two-week campaign period.

Caretaker prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob

On that note, Bersih also called for advance voting to cater for out-of-region voters, especially for East Malaysians living in the peninsula as well as West Malaysians in Sabah and Sarawak.

The move by the caretaker prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to call for GE15 during the monsoon season would likely cause inconvenience to many voters in flood-prone areas around the country and suppress voters’ turnout, Bersih added.

"We have identified five key areas, which are part of our Ketuanan Pengundi campaign for the rakyat to demand from the EC and political parties," added the electoral watchdog.

"Firstly, we must reject any politicians or parties that see political power as means to escape punishment or to exact revenge on their opponents."

For this, Bersih stressed the importance of ensuring the judiciary was free from political interference.

"We must separate the role of the public prosecutor from that of the attorney-general, who is a political appointee," Bersih said.

Bersih also urged the rakyat to choose parties or coalitions that commit to parliamentary reforms such as the restoration of the Parliamentary Services Act and empowering select committees, backbenchers and opposition through amendments to the Standing Order.

"We must also end corruption by choosing clean politicians and parties that are committed to taking concrete measures such as the passing of the Political Financing Act, implementation of a National Anti-Corruption Plan and reform the MACC so that it is not used as a weapon against political opponents.

"We also propose a Fixed Term Parliament Act to ensure greater certainty for all of us.

"To restore Parliament as the institution that determines with certainty the formation of a government, we also propose amendments to the House Standing Orders to provide for a Confirmatory Vote of Confidence (CVC) for any incoming prime minister and a Constructive Vote of No-Confidence (CVNC) for any PM who may have lost the support of the majority of MPs.

"These mechanisms would prevent the collapse of governments through sometimes dubious statements of withdrawal of support from the sitting prime minister issued outside Parliament," added Bersih. - Mkini