SHAH ALAM, March 3 — A total of 4.1 million Malaysians who are eligible to vote have yet to register as voters as of February this year, Election Commission (EC) chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said today.

He said the comprised of various races, with the majority comprising those around 21 years of age.

As such, he said the commission was working with the private sector to organise various programmes to get them to register.

“Based on the latest statistics, about 45 per cent of Malaysians are the young people, with more than four million of them not registered as voters, it is worrisome.

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“If they do not register as voters, there is no point talking (on the country’s political situation) on the social media, if what is spoken cannot be translated into votes,” he told reporters after launching the Voter Registration Campaign at Kompleks Media Kumpulan Karangkraf here today.

He said among the factors the young people did not register as voters was they did not understand the important of the “people’s power” or the absence of facilities, especially in the rural areas, for them to do so.

As such, he said, the three-month campaign would be mobilised to get them to register.

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“The EC will focus on areas where the people have problems to leave their place to register as voters, like in the rural areas,” he added.

Mohd Hashim said Malaysians should exercise their voting rights by casting their vote on polling day.

He said the highest voter turn-out in elections in the country was only up to 75 per cent so far.

“For example, in the recent Sarawak state election, only 68 per cent of the voters cast their votes,” he added.

The voter registration campaign at the Kompleks Media Kumpulan Karangkraf is jointly organised by Sinar Harian newspaper and Air Asia X Berhad.

Through this campaign, Air Asia X Berhad is offering 1,100 free flight tickets to several destinations abroad for those who register as voters. — Bernama