Category: Opinion

What will happen when you abstain from voting? By Kerk Chee Yee

Lochna Menon

With a looming GE-14, which could very well be the determining factor of a rightfully democratic Malaysia, there has been speculation of registered voters wanting to abstain from voting. Below, the writer describes why he thinks this new school of thought has emerged and what can happen if they do not exercise their democratic right. Kerk Chee Yee is the political secretary to DAP Parliamentary Leader Lim Kit Siang. Read on. “In the 13th general election in May 2013, there were 11.2 million out of 13.2 million registered voters who…

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The 2017 New Zealand Elections

Lochna Menon

Lydia Chai is a Malaysian living in New Zealand. Here she shares her experience voting in the New Zealand general elections as a permanent resident.   NEW ZEALAND : Voting is EASY The New Zealand general elections were held on 23 September 2017. Like Malaysia, voting in New Zealand is not compulsory. If there’s one thing I am grateful for when I cast my vote here, it’s how easy it is to vote. Advance voting is available to anyone. Whether you’re a normal voter, a permanent resident, voting outside of…

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#hungparliament : WHAT WILL HAPPEN?

Lochna Menon

(Scroll down to read the article in Bahasa Malaysia)   The media is abuzz with the term: a#HungParliament. Fret not! Nobody will be hung / hanged out to dry or die. It simply means that there is no political party (or a pre-election alliance or coalition) that wins a ‘simple majority’ – meaning 50% + 1 of the seats – thus will be able to form a government in its own right. What will happen then? Well, many possibilities! [1] But let us look at the process step by step.…

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The New Election Boundaries: Where GE-14 will be won or lost

Lochna Menon

Earlier this month, in historic legal victories, BERSIH 2.0 Outreach Officer Chan Tsu Chong along with six others were granted leave and a stay order to challenge the Election Commission’s (EC) delineation proposals in Melaka. This means the process of re-drawing the election boundaries for Melaka has been suspended until the court case is completed. This builds upon the work already done in Selangor to challenge the new proposals. The importance of these legal challenges for the fate of the Fourteenth General Election (GE14) can’t be overstated. The EC’s motivations for the new boundaries are obvious.…

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