KUANTAN (May 21): A youth alleged today that he voted twice in the 13th general election in an effort to question the efficacy of the indelible ink.

According to Malay daily Sinar Harian today, Mohd Fadhli Khaharruddin, 23, claimed he did not submit his ballot paper after entering the polling station to vote for a second time.

Instead, Mohd Fadhli alleged that he kept the ballot paper and the stream number as proof that the voting procedure using the indelible ink was weak.

He said his move to vote for a second time was an independent decision, made without coercion or payment from any quarters, when the indelible ink on his finger washed off after he voted for the first time.

“I voted at 10.30am in stream number 4 at the Sekolah Kebangsaan Sungai Isap polling station and later voted for a second time at 1.15pm at the same location,” he was quoted saying at a press conference on the matter.

“With these two times of voting, I can prove that the validity of the electoral system is questionable,” he added.

Also present were Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh, Tanjung Lumpur assembly member Rosli Abdul Jabbar and PAS human rights and legal department adviser Mohd Aznel Azharudin.

Mohd Fadhli, who lives in Perkampungan Sungai Isap Damai, immediately lodged a police report after he found how easy it was for him to vote again.

He said he used bleach to remove the ink after washing his finger with soap, and the ink disappeared immediately.

“So I made the decision to repeat the same voting process, follow all the procedures and evidently, I got past the officers and received another ballot paper,” he said.

Fuziah said the same incident may have occurred in other areas.

“If there were such incidences, it is better for the Election Commission (EC) to call for another round of elections,” she said.

According to another article in the Malay daily, International Studies and Governmental Law College lecturer Prof Dr Azizuddin Mohd Sani said DAP is likely to obtain more seats than PAS and PKR in the 14th general election based on several factors.

“First, it depends on the delineation process which will be conducted at the end of the year. If there are more seats in urban areas, DAP will contest in those areas,” he was quoted saying.

“If DAP were to field more Malay candidates, bumiputera candidates in Sabah and Sarawak other than Chinese and Indian candidates, there is a high possibility for DAP to win more seats,” he added.

Meanwhile, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) School of Social Science deputy dean Prof Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said BN cannot solely rely on Umno to win votes in the next general election.

He said BN has to ensure all the seats are proportionately distributed among its component parties.

“If Umno were to contest too many seats, BN would not appear as a large coalition in need of each other,” he was quoted saying.

“Maybe Umno is seen to have more potential in winning seats. But the other component parties have to find a formula to win seats as well,” he added.