Bung seeks explanation over 50pct rise in Sabah voters

Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Bung Moktar Radin asked the Election Commission (EC) to provide an explanation regarding the “drastic” rise in the number of registered voters in Sabah.

The Sabah BN chairperson said the rise was concerning as the number of voters for the 15th general election (GE15) rose more than 50 percent compared to GE14 voters in 2018.

The concerns centred around the high increase in Bumiputera-Muslim voters in Kadazan Dusun Murut (KDM) areas, including the Penampang parliamentary constituency, he said, adding that the matter requires clarification to dispel concerns raised.

“Following such a high rise in the number of voters, political parties in this election will be indirectly affected,” he said in a statement today.

Media outlets reported previously that voters in Sabah had increased from 1,064,686 voters in GE14 in 2018 to 1,638,806 this year.

Postal voting for university students

Bung (above) also requested that the EC consider early voting or postal voting for university students, especially those who have just registered at their respective universities across the country to enable them to vote in GE15.

He said their right to vote should not be dismissed, especially as young voters aged 18 were allowed to vote through automatic registration effective Dec 15 last year.

“We are aware that university students are also part of the 18-year-old voters who are currently studying and some of them have just registered to start their sessions at all universities in the country.

“Therefore, this group needs to be given the flexibility to cast early votes or postal votes so that their rights as voters are not disregarded,” he said.

- Bernama

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