An election watch group is conducting a study of the electoral rolls issued by the Election Commission (EC) last year, to find out if the list contains the names of genuine voters.

Malaysians for Free and Fair Elections (Mafrel) chairperson Abdul Malek Hussin said about 125 volunteers have been deployed to contact 1,000 voters in selected constituencies.

The voters' names have been randomly picked from the current EC list, which has been verified up to Dec 31.

Abdul Malek said checks have been made in the Gombak and Lembah Pantai constituencies in Kuala Lumpur, but that the findings will only be ready for release after March 2.

The next round of checks is being planned for Kedah and Kelantan, he said.

The group , which claims to be independent, comprises individuals from various sectors and professions.

Smooth going

Abdul Malek said that, to date, the volunteers have been able to carry out their work without any hitches.

"But we will face problems if the EC decides to update the electoral rolls because we would have to conduct the study all over again. We may also experience a shortage of volunteers then," he told malaysiakini .

Last month, EC secretary Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said the rolls were being cleaned up following complaints from political parties that these contained the names of up to 71,000 dubious voters.

He added that, if elections are held before March 31, the electoral rolls verified on Dec 31 will be used. If the elections are held after March, the rolls verified on March 31 will be used.

Speculation is rife that Parliament, which is scheduled to sit from March 8, could be dissolved by April 12 to pave way for the polls.

The date coincides with the last day for the dissolution of the Sabah legislative assembly, so that the state and federal elections can be held simultaneously there.