Hashim Abdullah has been appointed as the new Election Commission (EC) chairperson, replacing Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof who will retire this month.

Hashim's appointment will take effect from Jan 24, Chief Secretary Ali Hamsa said in a statement today.

“On behalf of the government, I thank Abdul Aziz for his seven years of excellent service as EC chairperson,” Ali said.

Hashim, 62, is currently the deputy chairperson of the commission and was appointed to the post in September 2014.

Prior to that, the Kota Bharu native was secretary-general of Agriculture and Agro-based Ministry.

Aziz reaches the mandatory retirement age this month. Article 114(3) of Federal Constitution stipulates that the EC chairperson must stand down when he or she reaches 66 years old.

Aziz took over as EC chairperson from Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman on Dec 31, 2008.

The electoral reform movement Bersih 2.0 has been calling for a successor who will not repeat previous mistakes .

Bersih 2.0 chief Maria Chin Abdullah has outlined four demands for the new EC chairperson to improve the electoral system:

1. The EC should be put under the purview of Parliament. Currently it comes under the Prime Minister's Department.
2. Establish a parliamentary select committee to receive the periodic EC reports. This is to ensure EC is responsible to Parliament.
3. Establish a bipartisan EC selection committee to appoint EC members. This is to ensure the EC is free from the influence of any political party.
4. Restore assistant returning officers (ARO) from political parties to assist the EC in registering new voters.