KUALA LUMPUR – Interested voters can participate in a simulated recall polls campaign mooted by Bersih 2.0 for constituencies whose elected representatives party-hop in between general elections.
The impetus for the campaign are defections on the first anniversary of the February 2020 Sheraton Move involving the MPs for Tebrau, Julau and Kuala Langat.
The initiative was launched today in a Facebook Live session on Bersih’s page, and officiated by former Dewan Rakyat speaker Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof.
Bersih chairman Thomas Fann said a recall election law is different from one on party-hopping.
“It is different from an anti-hopping law in that it is not a prohibitive law, and a seat is not automatically declared vacant when an elected representative changes parties or is sacked by their party.
The freedom of an MP or assemblyman to associate with a party of their choice, or to go independent, is not violated in a recall election mechanism.”
In its campaign, Bersih will act as an electoral committee and conduct simulated recall polls in constituencies whose elected representatives have left their parties.
It will use an e-voting system developed by Bersih’s tech partner, ReGov Technologies, that was demonstrated during the launch, and described as secure, robust and user-friendly.
ReGov assured that the system is trustworthy, with security measures in place to ensure vote validity and protect voter privacy.
A minimum of 3% of registered voters in a constituency is needed to sign an online petition for the simulated recall election. Once Bersih verifies that the 3% comprises registered voters, the recall election exercise will be opened.
At least 10% of a constituency’s registered voters need to participate before the elected representative can be considered recalled or sacked.
Ariff said the country has seen changes of government where voters are left out of the decision-making process.
“Despite being a democracy, the majority vote of the people has not been taken into account in some alarming circumstances of late, leading to situations such as a ‘backdoor government’ and party-hopping resulting in changes of government at the state level and so on.
What’s the point of standing in line to vote when elected representatives abandon the mandate that voters have entrusted them with?”
Recall polls are a way to honour the voice and vote of the rakyat, he added.
“For one, it deters party-hopping. Representatives will have to think twice before moving from one party to another after the elections.
“In a way, it’s a win-win situation, where representatives are held accountable to the constituents they serve, and where constituents hold the power to sack or keep their representatives.”
Through its campaign, Bersih hopes to empower Malaysians by letting them act against elected representatives who party-hop or fail to serve their constituencies in between general elections.
“A simulation such as this Sack or Keep? campaign is a meaningful way of showing what recall elections would be like,” said Ariff.
“It serves to show constituents how the process could take place, and it also gives voters a taste of what an e-voting system would be like.” – The Vibes, June 21, 2021
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