The Election Commission (EC) today assured it will not allow artificial fingers to be used by certain parties for fraud purposes in the coming general election.

Its chairperson Mohd Hashim Abdullah, who gave the assurance, also assured that the electoral process conducted is clean, transparent and free of any fraud and irregularities.

He issued the statement today following an allegation by a Selangor state assemblyperson that artificial fingers were imported from China by certain parties to be used for fraud purposes in the coming general election in order to retain the existing regime.

"In addition, the source of an image of an artificial finger and a bottle of ink that went viral on social media has been identified.

"EC will ensure there will not be any fraud or irregularities in the polling process," he said, adding that any such attempts to sabotage the electoral system in Malaysia would be subjected to legal action.

Mohd Hashim said the EC was taking the allegation and viral message seriously and was investigating them.

He said EC had identified that the source of the image was believed to have been taken from the akikofujita.com website that published an article 'Prosthetic Fingers Help Reform Former Yakuza Members' on Dec 16, 2013.

The image was later used by certain parties in Indonesia purportedly for the ongoing 2017 Indonesian election, he said.

Mohd Hashim said EC would take more stringent measures by checking the finger of every voter more thoroughly to ensure no elements of fraud or an attempt to sabotage the country's electoral system.

He advised the public not to be alarmed and to give full confidence and trust to the EC in handling the election process in a fair and transparent manner.

"The people are asked not to be easily swayed by any viral messages and unverified allegations aimed at raising concerns and doubts on the integrity of the EC," he said.

- Bernama