Urging the Election Commission (EC) to consider virtual voting approach

Recently I have urged the Election Commission (EC) to consider virtual voting in the coming 12th Sarawak State Election for the safety of voters and others in view of prevailing Covid-19 pandemic in our country. The casting of votes electronically could be a way for elections to be held in the future amid the uncertainty we are facing and the changes to the current system in a way would also encourage more voters to exercise their rights.

While the EC may consider this but it also needs to ensure that the virtual voting would really be effective before implementing it. To me, we are now in the digital era and surely the people already know which party they want to vote for in this coming State Election.

Maybe one day we will opt for digital (e-voting), maybe our election mode can be changed. But for now, it’s good to prolong the election period, or perhaps use MySejahtera to vote?  What matters is that the system works fine and the election results will not be tempered with.

We could consider extending the voting period to one month which had been done before in the 1970s and I had also come across some articles pointing out that the elections in the 80s were held in a prolonged manner. The last time it was done was due to logistics but this time round, maybeby  dragging on an election period can be adopted to curb the spread of Covid-19.

What’s important is ensuring that the election process and voting be carried out in a more controlled manner to curb the spread of Covid-19. Presently, our voters will have to queue at their respective polling stations and wait for their turn to cast their ballot. Thus, this may cause inconvenience to certain voters such as senior citizens.

They have to go to the polling station, queue either in the hot sun or in the rain. If scanning (e-voting) can be used, why not? I would support any new measures introduced by the EC to ensure the safety and wellbeing of voters during this pandemic.

I am fully behind it if the EC felt that a staggered election is required as a control measure to hold the next state election in a safe manner but we also need to see if Sarawak or Peninsular Malaysia has achieved herd immunity so that the virus would not spread and pose a threat to lives.

I believe our voters these days are more informed and already know who they will vote for. As such, prolonging the election period should not be an issue or a challenge to the contending parties in the next polls. It depends on the government and the EC has to decide whether the election shall be a short or a long one. But we want what is best for the people.