KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 23 – The Dewan Rakyat was told here on Thursday that the Election Commission has never prevented any political party from registering new voters. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said that based on studies and methods of registration procedures.
However, the EC had also felt that it was needless to continue with the appointment of assistant registrars from among political representatives. She said when replying to Teresa Kok Suh Sim (DAP-Seputeh) that the EC has always carried out thorough and comprehensive study on the existing methods and procedures to ensure a smooth voter registration process.
Kok had wanted to know the total number of new voters registered by the EC in each state since May 2013, and what had been preventing political parties from registering new voters and the mechanisms used by the EC to register new voters. Meanwhile, Azalina also said that the EC had received 373,467 applications for new voter registration from May 2013 to May this year.
“In order to draw more citizens to register as new voters, the various efforts had been carried out including the mobile voter registration method using caravans. It will provide the opportunity to the EC to carry out aggressive outreach programmes and to provide convenience to the public to register as voters,” said Azalina.
She said the EC had always organised effective awareness activities, including using various media channels and opening registration counters at focal places such as shopping centres, recreation centres, residential areas, training centres and higher education institutions. She added that the EC is always open to invitations to provide registration counters.
In addition, she said that the individuals who want to become voters could visit other channels such as voter registration counters at the EC headquarters in Putrajaya, state election offices, district and land offices, local authority offices, selected post offices and the EC mobile counters nationwide.
