THE Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) has slammed the recent government allocations announced in Sungai Bakap.
Its steering committee said this type of announcements have become a new norm for the Madani government when approaching by-elections, although the practice was frequently opposed by the Pakatan Harapan-led government when they were in opposition.
“Bersih strongly condemns the use of government resources during elections, whether in by-elections or general elections,” it said in a statement on Wednesday (June 12).
“It is commonly known that after the announcement of a seat vacancy by the Speaker of the House of Representatives or the state legislative assembly, a by-election will be held.
“Therefore, ministers at both the Federal and State Government levels should be aware of the limits of their function during this time.”
The electoral watchdog’s statement came following the recent announcements of new allocations made by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming in Penang.
Yesterday (June 11), Anwar, through his political secretary Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin, had delivered contributions worth RM290,000 to nine mosques and 20 suraus in the Sungai Bakap state constituency.
Each mosque and surau received RM10,000 to be used in conjunction with Hari Raya Korban on June 17.
On the same day, Nga also presented a cheque worth RM17,751,284 for the construction of a fire station, the upgrading of Bukit Panchor market, and contributions to non-Islamic places of worship.
3C during election
Bersih further outlined the 3C prohibitions during elections, namely No Conditions, No Campaigning and No Candidates, which the electoral watchdog said it had established since the 2023 state elections for non-caretaker governments such as the federal and state governments in the context of by-elections.
“However, this unethical practice continues from one election to another. This practice contradicts the principle of fair political competition on a level playing field in elections,” Bersih lamented.
“We see continuous violations of clean and fair election ethics by the Madani government itself in several previous elections, which will further erode public confidence in the election system and democratic process in the country.
“The Madani government must realize that election goodies like these allocations will not make the government more popular, but will be seen as using any means, including methods previously condemned as unfair, and thus erode public trust in clean and fair elections.” – June 12, 2024
Main pic credit: The Star
