SHAH ALAM - Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) urges for the Election Commission (EC) to improve the rights of out-of-constituency voters especially those from Sabah and Sarawak who reside outside of the states.
Bersih steering committee in a statement said the EC needed to give the status of voters who were not present to absentee voters to allow them to vote early at the polling station before the 15th General Election (GE15).
"The EC could set up a "Mega Early Voting Centre” in each capital for absentee voters to vote three days prior to the election day for the voting papers to be sent to the officers in charge of the constituency to count the votes on election day.
"The Health Ministry had shown that major operations at vaccination centres (PPV) could be implemented accordingly and safely," it said in a statement, today.
It also emphasised that the improvement of the rights of voters was important in ensuring all Malaysians could observe politicians and government officials as well as strengthening the backbone of the country's democracy.
It added that Malaysian citizens should be allowed to vote with maximum facilities and minimal costs, something which according to it has been obtained for a long time by most voters from Sabah and Sarawak who lived outside the state.
"The matter is not true for 500,000 voters from Sabah and Sarawak that lived in the Peninsula and 60,000 Peninsula voters living in the Borneo region.
"If they wanted to vote in the federal or state election, they need to take leave from work and spend over RM1,000 to make their way home to their constituency.
"This means that those who couldn't afford flight tickets or take leave would be denied their rights to vote.
"Considering that most people from Sabah and Sarawak had left the state due to lack of education and work opportunities, when they are denied their rights to vote as an absentee, they were systematically sidelined in Malaysian politics," the statement said.
According to the statement, it is not surprising that despite the relatively high national voting percentage in 2008 which was 76 per cent, 2013 (85 per cent) and 2018 (82 per cent), the highest number recorded in Sarawak was only 73 per cent while Sabah was 80 per cent.
"It is unreasonable and unforgivable that we as a country let this injustice in politics and elections continue for 59 years,” it said.
Bersih urged for the absentee voting process to be simplified by replacing the manual operation of postal ballot papers and enable voters to download and print PDF version.
The statement said this was for the papers to be disposed of after the nomination day and it could reach the returning officers on time.
"Both the reforms for absentee voters with the facility for early voting and simplifying the process of overseas postal voters must be implemented before GE15 to avoid low turnout percentage like what happened in the Johor state election in March with only 55 per cent turnout.
"The low percentage weakens the government's legitimacy especially when the government needs to take necessary steps that are less popular but needed in overcoming the crisis," it said.