EC: Re-delineation study to begin year end

An electoral boundary re-delineation study will begin at the end of the year, said Election Commission (EC) deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar.

Wan Ahmad said the exercise would be carried out in stages and was expected to be completed in two years.

"Actually it should have been done in 2011. But we postponed it as we had to make preparations for the 13th general election," he said during his presentation entitled 'The EC's experience in managing delineated constituencies in 2003' at the post-election seminar, 'Constituency Delineation' organised by the Malaysian Bar Council yesterday.

"We have started collecting the data through the state EC offices and appointed some officers from the Statistics Department and state Land offices to help in drawing the map and determining the population in the areas," he said.

He said based on Article 113(2)(ii) of the Federal Constitution, the re-delineation could be done after eight years following the last exercise, which in this case was in 2003.

Wan Ahmad expected the latest exercise to be more challenging, in anticipation of public dissatisfaction when the preliminary investigation outcome is displayed.

"The investigations have not even started but some people are already voicing their dissatisfaction. They are saying that we are doing the re-delineation for the interest of certain parties. We are doing it because surely in the past eight to 10 years, the country had undergone changes including population increase, urbanisation and development.

"To avoid being labelled one-sided, we will involve the public to help us in the study," he said.

Meanwhile, he told reporters that the Pakatan Rakyat's demand for EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof to resign, was uncalled for.

"If they cannot accept the election outcome, they can file election petitions as provided for under Article 118 of the Federal Constitution," he said.