PUTRAJAYA, Feb 15 — The government’s ongoing activities in Semenyih cannot be deemed to be in violation of election laws as long as they are not being done to fish for votes, said Election Commission (EC) chairman Azhar Azizan Harun.
He said everyone should realise that the Semenyih state by-election was being held with the government already in place and that the Selangor State Assembly had not been dissolved.
“When the government is still in place, there will be government activities. If these activities are being used to fish for votes, then it becomes an issue,” he told reporters when asked to comment on the presence of many Cabinet members in Semenyih, although nomination day for the March 2 by-election is only scheduled for tomorrow.
Speaking to reporters after three EC members — Datuk Seri Ramlan Ibrahim, Datuk Chin Phaik Yoong and Zoe Randhawa — reported for duty at the EC headquarters here today, Azhar explained that it was up to the court to make a final decision.
He said the government would surely be able to justify its activities in Semenyih and prove that they were not being carried out to fish for votes should the matter be brought to court.
Asked about preparations for the Semenyih by-election, Azhar said the EC was 100 per cent ready.
He added that the by-election, the sixth since the 14th general election on May 9 last year, would cost RM1.8 million and involve 992 workers.
The by-election has been necessitated by the death of the assemblyman, Bakhtiar Mohd Nor of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), of a heart attack on January 11.
In last year’s general election, he obtained 23,428 votes to defeat Barisan Nasional’s Datuk Johan Abd Aziz (14,464); Mad Shahmidur Mat Kosim of PAS (6,966); and Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s S. Arutchelvan (1,293). — Bernama
