KUCHING: It is not impossible for Sarawak to achieve the target of 70 percent voter turnout, says Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) political analyst Dr Lee Kuok Tiung.
According to him, it was important for the Election Commission (EC) to convince voters in terms of health and safety assurance.
“With the turnout reaching 65 to 66 percent during the Melaka state election as well as the polling day date strategy determined by the EC on Dec 18, it is not impossible for Sarawak to be able to achieve the turnout target of 70 percent.
“The most important thing is how the EC can convince voters that their safety and health are guaranteed in an effort to ensure that the target is achieved,” he said on Wednesday (Nov 24).
Elaborating further, he said the standard operating procedures (SOPs) imposed in Melaka were appropriate, especially since so far, there were no signs of a new Covid-19 cluster as happened in the Sabah state election last year.
“Certainly the EC in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and all relevant agencies will try to make improvements on the existing SOPs for the 12th Sarawak Election.”
Commenting on the voting date (Dec 18), Lee said it was timely as the date was during the school holidays as well as before the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
“Usually during this period, family members who work abroad will also return for a week or two.
“Therefore, I see the choice of the date as very appropriate and I am confident that it will be able to increase the percentage of voters outside the constituency to return to vote.”
At a press conference yesterday, the EC targeted 70 percent of voters in the state to go out and vote in the polls, where they also implemented the ‘Jom Undi’ campaign through media channels to encourage voters to go out and fulfil their responsibilities.
