Bribing of voters in elections a worrying trend - Fahmi

KUALA LUMPUR - The practice of bribing voters in elections in the country is worrying, especially in light of two such cases being proven in the Election Court for the recent 15th General Election (GE15), PKR Communications Director Fahmi Fadzil said.

He said the Election Court had previously nullified the victory of Pas candidate Datuk Ahmad Amzad Hashim for the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary seat in GE15 due to the presence of elements of bribery, and today, a similar case was reported for the Kemaman parliamentary seat involving PAS representative Che Alias Hamid.

"This is quite a worrying trend. In terms of election results, we leave it to the Election Commission (EC), but in terms of its political implications, it’s a cause for concern because if bribery is considered a corrupt practice, how can a party (PAS) that claims to champion Islam does not see anything wrong with such a corrupt practice?

"...this is definitely not a good practice for our democratic system,” he told reporters after visiting DHL Express Malaysia Headquarters at Menara TM here today.

Fahmi, who is also Minister of Communications and Digital, said, for now, the Unity Government is taking a wait-and-see approach regarding this matter.

Earlier today, the Terengganu Terengganu Election Court today nullified the victory of Che Alias for the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary seat in the GE15.

Judge Datuk Anselm Charles Fernandis said the petitioner in the case, Wan Mohamad Hisham Wan Abdul Jalil, who is a voter, succeeded in proving that corruption had taken place with the aim of influencing voters in the election. The court also ordered the respondent to pay RM30,000 to the petitioner. - BERNAMA