EC told to implement Undi 18 by December, minister says

The Election Commission (EC) has been instructed to implement Undi 18 by Dec 31 this year in compliance with a court order last Friday, law minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said today.

“The EC has been asked to implement, in its power, whatever is necessary as ordered by the judge in Sarawak,” he told a press conference after visiting the EC in Putrajaya today.

Last Friday, the Kuching High Court ordered the EC and the government to implement Undi 18 by Dec 31 this year.

Judicial commissioner Alexander Siew How Wai made the decision after allowing the judicial review application brought by five Malaysian youths seeking the immediate enforcement of a Federal Constitution amendment to lower the minimum voting age from 21 to 18.

Wan Junaidi said the government had yet to decide whether to file an appeal against the court’s decision and that as such, the order still had to be followed.

“It has yet to be decided, it needs in-depth discussion with the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) and the decision of the Cabinet,” he said.

Wan Junaidi said another issue that arose after Parliament amended the Federal Constitution to lower the age of voting as well as candidacy was the fact that several states had yet to amend their state constitution to allow 18-year-olds to contest in elections in their respective states.

He said thorough discussions on this issue must also be held between the EC and the AGC to find suitable solutions should the states object to lowering the candidacy age.