KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA — The country’s Election Commission (EC) will implement the lowering of the minimum voting age to 18 by 31 Dec as directed by the Kuching High Court, said new de facto law minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.
This is regardless whether the government will appeal against the High Court’s decision, The Star reported him as saying at a press conference after a visit to the EC’s headquarters in Putrajaya on Tuesday (7 Sep).
Currently, the minimum voting age in Malaysia is 21.
Bernama reported Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi as saying that the EC has been asked to “do everything that is required of it, in tandem with powers vested within the EC as ordered by the court”.
The minister also noted that the Federal Government has yet to determine whether it will appeal against the Kuching High Court decision.
“We will have to discuss with the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) and I need to get a directive from the Cabinet on this matter.
“While we look into this (whether to appeal), the EC has been asked to proceed with measures to comply with the court order,” he added.
The decision at hand concerns a judicial review brought by five Sarawakian youths who sought an order from the court to have the constitutional amendment regarding the lowering of the voting age from 21 to 18 implemented.
In granting an order to quash the Federal Government and EC’s decision to delay lowering the voting age, Judicial Commissioner Alexander Siew How Wai on 3 Sep ruled that the delay — from the originally slated time in July this year to Sep 2022 — was irrational and unreasonable.
The delay was earlier announced by the EC in March following constraints and issues such as the movement control order that affected its process to carry out electoral policies for the youth.
Former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman had tabled the Undi18 Bill in 2019.
Parliament on 16 Jul that year unanimously passed a constitutional amendment allowing the minimum voting age to be lowered to 18.
1.19 million out of 5.6 million unregistered voters are those aged between 18 and 20 years old.
The remainder of the unregistered voters comprise those aged 21 and above.
In a statement on 3 Sep, Ivan Alexander Ong, one of the applicants in the judicial review suit, said that the High Court’s decision will enable as many as 125,000 to 135,000 Sarawakian youths aged 18 to 20 to “vote in the upcoming state elections once the localised emergency ends”.
“Undi 18 created history where, for the first time ever, a constitutional amendment which restored the voting rights for millions of youths was agreed (upon) by all political parties,” he added.
“Now, in the upcoming general election, there will be approximately 8 million new voters, which is a significant figure that can change the course of an election,” said Mr Ong.
Grace Chang Swee Ern, 19, another applicant in the suit, said that the right to vote at 18 is “instrumental in the development of a healthy democracy”.
“Youths are concerned about the decisions that are vital to their future, and voting should be one of the best ways to voice their concerns,” she said.
A ruling on a similar judicial review case will be made in the Kuala Lumpur High Court on 21 Oct.
