Electoral reforms press group Bersih today have urged Putrajaya to appoint one of their former chairpersons or a former judge to replace outgoing Election Commission chief Mohd Hashim Abdullah.

Bersih acting chairperson Shahrul Aman Mohd Saari said the EC should be helmed by someone "strong and stern" to reform the electoral system.

"The previous Bersih chairs are very good candidates. They have gone through a lot of things but it really depends (as) I know they are very careful about this, they are not power-hungry people.

"Ex-judges or good judges are also among the people who are qualified. Some judges who were brave enough to make judgments despite a (pressures from the previous) BN government," he told a press conference in Petaling Jaya today.