KUCHING: The implementation of Undi18 in the post Covid-19 period will only have minimal impact on the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government.
A political analyst, Dr Ammar Redza Ahmad Rizah of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) said that the GPS government is seen to be very committed in implementing the economic recovery plan and helping the people, including providing various aid under the Bantuan Khas Sarawakku Sayang (BKSS).
“The GPS state government can rest be assured that the people of Sarawak will remain loyal while various efforts are being undertaken to revive the economy,” he said when contacted yesterday.
He was prompted for comments on the opposition’s remark that GPS was intimidated by the implementation of Undi18 hence wanting to rush the 12th state election this year.
“The bigger question now is whether the people would want to go out to vote during this pandemic.
“If the state election is held soon, the question needs to be directed at how the safety and health of the people will be guaranteed,” he said.
As such, he said it was important to have strong cooperation between the Election Commission (EC) and relevant agencies to formulate the most appropriate standard operating procedures (SOPs).
“This is the main focus compared to the question of whether the government is upset or scared with the implementation of Undi18,” he said.
A constitutional amendment to lower the voting age from 21 to 18 years old was passed in the Dewan Rakyat in 2019, however there was a delay in the implementation of Undi18.
On Sept 3, the High Court in Kuching quashed the government’s and EC’s decision to defer the implementation of the constitutional amendment, which includes Undi18 and automatic voter registration (AVR) to after Sept 2022.
High Court Judicial Commissioner Alexander Siew How Wai also gave a court order that required all necessary steps to be taken for the constitutional amendments to be implemented by the end of this year.
“The interesting point in this Undi18 polemic is the impact of its implementation on the country’s political landscape.
“Currently, the number of unregistered voters is 4.2 million or 22 percent of the total who are eligible to vote. In other words, one in five individuals who are eligible to vote did not register as a voter with the EC,” Ammar said.
He said that once the Federal Constitution is amended, the number of new voters will increase by 4.2 million because of the implementation of the automatic voter registration.
“In addition, there will be an additional 3.6 million from the group of voters of 18 to 21 years old. So, Malaysia will have around 7.8 million new voters.
“This amount will give more dynamics in the existing political system. However, not only that, the EC’s management cost to administer and conduct elections will also increase.
“But, this is a healthy thing for our democratic journey, including Sarawak,” said Ammar.
