A survey on electoral issues released yesterday is “damning evidence” that the government has failed to ensure clean and fair elections, justifying the Bersih 3.0 rally on April 28, said DAP.

“From the data which was collected ... it proves beyond doubt that the ‘“political transformation programme’ commenced since Merdeka celebrations last year has failed to move Malaysians.

NONE“The result also fully justified why it was necessary for Bersih to take to streets despite being denied the opportunity to gather peacefully in Merdeka Square to demand free and fair elections for all Malaysians,” said DAP national publicity secretary Tony Pua.

He was commenting on Merdeka Centre’s results for a poll taken in April just before over 100,000 Malaysians in Kuala Lumpur and many more nationwide and globally took to the streets for Bersih 3.0.

According to the poll, 92 percent of respondents wanted the electoral roll cleaned up before the next general election, touted to be around the corner, while nearly half those surveyed said they do not trust the electoral system.

“Only 44 percent of Malaysians surveyed were ‘confident’ that the electoral process was free from irregularity despite the Election Commission’s (EC) repeated insistence that our electoral roll is ‘the cleanest in the world’,” said Pua.

‘Still time to implement Bersih demands’

He also pointed out that only 37 percent thought postal voting was transparent and unbiased.

NONE“The parliamentary select committee (PSC) on electoral reforms had in the last sitting agreed to amend the postal vote system for the army into an early-voting system, but at the same time added some 300,000 names to the postal voter list,” added Pua (left).

The PJ Utara MP pointed out that the survey also showed only 34 percent believing the PSC was sincere and a sign of BN willing to reform the electoral process.

“The results clearly showed that Malaysians have very little confidence in the half-hearted steps taken by the prime minister which was intended to give a better perception of our electoral process,” he said.

Pua said PM Najib Razak still had time to implement all of Bersih’s eight demands before the next GE, in the next parliament sitting starting June 11.

“Without true and thorough reforms from Najib, he will fail to win legitimacy even if he were to win the vote count in the 13th general election, as he will be seen as having won the elections through cheating and fraud, instead of via the support of the people,” he said.