KUCHING: The latest electoral roll for Sarawak recorded by the Election Commission (EC) stands at 1,943,074 voters, an increase of 59.14 per cent compared to 1,220,960 people recorded during the 14th general election (GE14).
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law), Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar (pix) said out of that number, voters between the ages of 21 and 39 made up the largest category with 825,791 people and 129,034 voters aged 18 to 20.
“The latest Sarawak electoral roll recorded a total of 975,618 male voters equivalent to 50.21 per cent and 967,456 (49.79 per cent) female voters,“ he said in a statement today.
The statement issued after a briefing by Sarawak EC which also mentioned that a total of 38,148 officers will be on duty for GE15 involving 1,943 polling stations including 55 early voting stations with 4,286 channels.
“A total of 1,943 polling centres have been gazetted involving schools, longhouses and several other identified premises. Of that number, 74 polling centres are located in rural areas that do not have access to telecommunications,“ he said.
In order to overcome this telecommunication access problem, Wan Junaidi said EC is cooperating with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and telecommunications companies to ensure that all candidate nomination centres and polling stations have connectivity and communication coverages.
He said EC also obtained the cooperation of the Insolvency Department of Malaysia and the Inland Revenue Board to get the latest information on the bankruptcy status and tax records of the candidates who will contesting, apart from the Attorney General’s Chambers to provide legal advice for the returning officer.
To ensure the smooth running of the election this time, he said Sarawak EC had made various preparations involving air, water and land logistics.
“In fact, in the event of a flood during the election, Sarawak EC has also planned various methods to ensure smooth election process with the cooperation of security agencies,“ he added.-Bernama