Votes, like commodities, go to the highest bidder.
WHAT a good move – this combination of three authorities working hand in glove to “look into any issues or complaints raised by individuals, politicians or any political parties” during the forthcoming GE14.
I say that it is a good move because the MACC will be around to help the police and the Election Commission to ensure that bribing of voters will not be as rampant as it has always been during past elections.
It is hoped that those who allegedly give and take bribes during the election campaign will be thoroughly investigated and that prosecution will follow if a breach of election laws can be proven. We shall see.
This involvement of MACC in catching the corrupt during election time is long overdue but it is a case of being better late than never.
It looks like the authorities mean business with the announcement last week by MACC deputy chief commissioner (operations) Datuk Seri Azam Baki that a taskforce comprising the MACC, the Election Commission and the police, would be formed as soon as parliament is dissolved.
Monitoring only? What about taking action at the same time?
Of course, the Election Act 1954, together with its rules, is the major legislation dealing with the conduct of elections in Malaysia. A breach of the election law, if reported and professionally investigated, goes to court and is decided by an election judge. In cases of corruption, the Election Commission needs another agency to help it out.
This time around, the MACC will act. Or am I assuming too much?
During the campaign
I would say monitoring plus investigations should be carried out during the campaigning period, especially on the eve of polling. Why? That is when money – lots of it – passes hands. Nabbing red-handed as many culprits as possible would send a strong signal to the would-be corrupters in future elections.
Nowadays, it is easier to take pictures of the giver and the receiver as proof of graft. Almost everybody has a smartphone and is therefore a photo journalist. The MACC working with these people would find it easier to catch the graft suspects.
A photo sent to the Facebook during the last election showed people in a longhouse counting heaps of notes of Malaysian ringgit, apparently for ‘equal and fair’ distribution to the voters there. It was not fake news. The man who took that picture and uploaded it onto the Internet is identifiable. That was last year, this time around, it may be different if MACC gets members of the public to help and help they must if corruption is to be reduced to a minimum during election time.
Otherwise, corruption becoming a political culture where a vote has a monetary value will be most difficult to eradicate.
Compulsory voting
To help reduce corruption during elections it is worth thinking of an idea, which I have been advocating all this while: compulsory voting. A registered voter will have to cast his or her ballot if there is a law forcing him or her to do so, on pain of a penalty.
Introduce this law here and see what happens. It will minimise the buying of votes resulting in less election expenses for the candidates. In many cases good candidates lose elections because of lack of funds. Once corruption can be reduced during election time, there will be no need for MACC’s help; they have other more important job to do (catch the big jerung aka sharks), who are more difficult to catch than the ordinary squid.
International observers, volunteers
The international observers will do the monitoring while we do the job of taking action in cases of breaches of the relevant laws.
There are members of non-governmental organisations around who are willing to help in monitoring the elections. Think of taking on board NGOs such as Rose, Bersih and Nafrel and other volunteers. That is, if these volunteers do not interfere with the work of the MACC or the police.
After the election
The most violated provision of the Election Ordinance of 1954 is that part that relates to the Election Returns. Every candidate must submit returns of expenditure after each election. Most candidates except for a few independent candidates submit fake election expenses. If the maximum amount allowed each candidate in a state constituency is say RM30,000 the amount submitted can be RM29,34.15. If the limit is RM50,000, the amount submitted can be RM49,345.10. No doubt there are genuine receipts of expenditure, but who in the Election Office can verify these figures at the time of submission of election returns? It’s a useless regulation.
Posters
I know of a report made by an election candidate to the police against a rival whose posters did not bear the name of the printers and the publishers as required by the Printing Presses Act. I have not heard of it being investigated since 1990. This time around, the MACC will have their hands full.
Wagering
Betting in the sense of wagering is also an offence under the law. Who will act on this during election time? Is it also the job of three-in-one taskforce?
The campaign for the coming general election under the eyes of the taskforce will be interesting to see if there will be any difference in the behaviour of the voters and the canvassers from that shown during past campaigns – where votes and voters could be bought and sold for value.
Psychologically, at least, the fear of the police presence being together with the anti-corruption personnel might work on some people. But will there be enough of these officers to cover all the constituencies in order to do a good job? Enough kaki (agents) to cover election campaigns especially the nocturnal ceramahs during which bribes may be given and taken?
Let us help the MACC. The agency needs the support of people who wish to see less buying of votes.
It is asking too much to expect the Election Commission’s agents such as the temporary polling staff – the returning or presiding officers – to detect violations of the election ordinance and take action there and then. It needs some help from another agency. Perhaps, this is the job for the MACC to monitor/or to report any incident to the police or to the Election Commission for further action.
Members of the Fourth Estate wish the trio every success. We shall be writing about it, no problem there.
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