KUCHING: A lawyer assemblyman is angered and puzzled by the actions of an Election Commission (EC) official in Hulu Rajang which he claims has “humiliated” Barisan Nasional candidate Wilson Ugak Kumbong during nomination day.
Asajaya assemblyman Abdul Karim Hamzah said Ugak and his nominating team were asked by returning officer Joseph Indi to change their Barisan shirts into something without any logo, whereas other nomination centres across the state had no problem with candidates wearing their party’s emblems on theirs.
“I am very puzzled as to why the EC officials in Hulu Rajang had asked of this from Ugak as well as his proposer, Belaga assemblyman Liwan Lagang, and seconder, PRS Youth chief Baleh Bakat Gira. What made it more humiliating was that the same wasn’t required of another party candidate who submitted his nomination paper at the same centre while wearing a shirt that bore the party’s symbol,” Karim lamented.
He said he was unsure whether the EC official was deliberately doing what he did due to personal reasons but stressed that such action was definitely wrong.
“The EC should ensure that their returning officers know the do’s and don’ts first. From my understanding of the Election Laws, party insignias or symbols are not allowed to be worn by supporters during polling. The EC officers must know the simple definition and difference between polling and nomination day,” he said, adding that if Joseph and others did not even distinguish the definition, they should relinquish their posts from the commission.
“He (Joseph) must have been too lazy to read up the Election Laws and Procedures. It is an embarrassment to Barisan and also to the EC, as it may hint that some EC officials are not impartial in their course of duty,” he said.
In the said incident on Saturday, Ugak, who arrived at 8.30am had to wait 20 minutes for his shirt replacement to arrive, and in the end Liwan just borrowed one belonging to one of their supporters.
PRS president Tan Sri Dr James Masing and Joseph had a short heated exchange over the matter, during which Joseph patiently explained that the latest requirement set by the EC was that no party symbol including those on shirts were allowed to be used or displayed inside a nomination centre.
Ugak later approached his opponent, SWP’s George Lagong, 53, who was using his party shirt but had concealed the symbol under a vest.
Ugak then said: “It is not fair that you (George) could change your shirt inside and I had to do it outside the gate.”
Both laughed it off later when Liwan cooled down the situation by saying: “This is a small matter. Let’s do the bigger stuff which is to get the nomination done and the contest be made official.”
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