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New electoral boundaries passed; what it means for GE14

KINI ROUNDUP | Here are the key headlines you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

New electoral boundaries passed

The Dewan Rakyat passed the Election Commission’s proposal to redraw the electoral boundaries of Peninsular Malaysia with a vote of 129 for and 80 against.

Dr Mahathir Mohamad claimed the government ignored the protestations of opposition MPs, who pointed out numerous examples of how the exercise undermined the principle of “one man, one vote,” adding that did not happen during his tenure as prime minister.

Strangely, the redelineation exercise did not involve Sabah.

The state government responded by writing to Putrajaya to demand that they too be given the same treatment.

At the Dewan Rakyat, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak defended the integrity of the exercise, and claimed that it would not “favour certain quarters.”

What it means for GE14

Malaysiakini’s KiniGuide on the new electoral boundaries casts doubt on the prime minister’s assurances, with at least 14 parliamentary constituencies and many at the state level seeing severe changes in demographics.

Had the new electoral boundaries been applied during the 2013 Selangor elections, Malaysiakini estimated that PAS would have lost four state seats and PKR two.

Malaysians worried about finding themselves as voters in other constituencies, but who could not see the latest voter information on the EC website, can use Malaysiakini’s free redelineation checker to find out if they are affected.

Other KiniBites

Mahathir also said today that he would only entertain debates with Najib and PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang.

Red shirts leader Jamal Md Yunos said he would have kicked Gelang Patah MP Lim Kit Siang had he been in Parliament yesterday.

The US government chose M Indira Gandhi as the recipient of the International Women of Courage award for her nine-year struggle for custody of her children.

Thai English newspaper The Nation lampooned Najib, likening him to Pinocchio with a fully-grown tree for a nose.

Deputy Home Minister Nur Jazlan Mohamed wondered aloud if “regime change” was part of Cathay Pacific’s business plan, after the airline offered to waive rebooking fees for Malaysians booked to fly on polling day.

Looking ahead

Najib will be at the key handing ceremony for the Metropolitan Kepong 1Malaysia Civil Servant Housing Scheme (PPA1M).

His deputy Zahid will meet members of the Police Family Association (Perkep) at Umno’s headquarters.

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