KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): A bipartisan parliamentary group has called on election law to be amended to include provisions restricting the use of government resources and machinery during election campaigns.

This was among the election law reforms proposed by the All-Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia (APPGM) on Integrity, Governance, and Anti-Corruption (IGAR) to restore public confidence in the conduct and administration of elections.

“Among key matters under the [Election Offences Act 1954] is to strengthen integrity, governance and anti-corruption by introducing provisions on the use of government resources and machinery during the election campaign period,” Shah Alam Member of Parliament Azli Yusof told the press in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the group urged the Election Commission to be given power to directly enforce election law.

“For example, it should be empowered to issue compounds for election offences such as campaigning on polling day and removing campaign materials, including social media posts,” Azli said.

“Currently, only the police have the authority to do so,” he noted.

The group also urged the government to make public the Electoral Reform Committee (ERC) report on improving the electoral process.

“This would enable the public, MPs, election and legal experts to debate the ERC's recommendations, including discussions on electoral system reforms such as proportional representation, the mixed member proportional system, or other systems deemed appropriate to improve the representation of the people's voices in the Dewan Rakyat,” he said.

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