Pakatan Rakyat saman SPR...

Pakatan Rakyat hari ini memfailkan saman terhadap tujuh orang ahli Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya (SPR) termasuk timbalan dan pengerusinya bagi mendapatkan pengisytiharan bahawa keputusan pilihan raya umum ke-13 yang lalu tidak sah.

Ahli Parlimen Subang, R Sivarasa berkata, saman tersebut juga dilakukan berhubung dakwaan penipuan pelaksanaan dakwat kekal dalam pilihan raya umu yang lalu serta tindakan anggota SPR yang dilihat berat sebelah.

"Kami mahu kes mahkamah yang khusus untuk ketengahkan serta mendedahkan isu ini dan perkara yang paling utama ialah mendapatkan pengisytiharan daripada SPR bahawa mereka gagal untuk melaksanakan dasar perlembagaan, berniat jahat dan tidak jujur berhubung penggunaan dakwat kekal dalam Pilihan Raya Umum ke-13.

"Jika mahkamah setuju dengan kita, maka kesimpulan yang logik yang akan kita perolehi ialah keputusan (pilihan raya umum) itu akan diketepikan.

"Kita mahu satu pengisytiharan bahawa semua 222 kerusi Parlimen yang diisytiharkan tidak sah," katanya dalam sidang media di lobi Parlimen hari ini.-malaysiakini

Pakatan sues EC members to force re-election...

Pakatan Rakyat has filed a lawsuit against all seven members of the Election Commission (EC) in a bid to seek, among others, a declaration that the results of the 13th general election are null and void.

PKR's Subang MP R Sivarasa (right in photo) said this is with regard to the EC members' alleged fraud in the botched implementation of indelible ink and ‘biased’ conduct.

"We want a specific court case to highlight and expose this issue and the main relief is the declaration that the EC failed to perform the constitutional duty, and maliciously and dishonestly engaged in fraud in the misuse of indelible ink in the 13th general election,” he told a press conference at the Parliament lobby this morning.

"If the court agrees with us, then the logical conclusion is the results (of the general election) would be set aside. We want a declaration (for the outcome) in all 222 parliamentary seats to be declared void.”

As a consequence of the alleged fraud, Pakatan is also seeking a court order for the removal of all seven EC members, including its chairperson and deputy chairperson.

Pakatan is further seeking damages from the seven EC members, but said the amount would be assessed by the court.

The suit was filed at 10am today at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

The plaintiffs - PKR, PAS and DAP and several individuals - were represented by constitutional lawyer Tommy Thomas (left), who is the lead counsel.

The individual plaintiffs include two ordinary voters and PKR's Kulim Bandar-Bahru candidate Saifuddin Nasution, PAS' Kuala Selangor candidate Dzulkefly Ahmad and DAP's Cameron Highlands candidate M Manogaran.

'EC members must take responsibility'

PKR's Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar said the suit did not name the EC, but all seven individual members of the commission in their capacity as EC members.

The move, she explained, is for the individual members to take responsibility so that the buck will not be passed to the government if any damages are ordered to be paid.

"This (is the) best way to manage and hold the top seven (members of the EC) responsible for their action or abuse ... we want to protect taxpayers’ money," she said.

Nurul Izzah noted that the EC is planning to conduct a redelineation process at the end of this year and said she hopes the hearing of the suit will be expedited to remove the EC members before then.

PAS’ Kota Bahru MP Takiyuddin Hassan said that, despite the countless police reports about the ‘removable’ indelible ink, no action has been taken.

The DAP’s Seremban MP Anthony Loke said the EC has continued to protect the identity of the supplier of the indelible ink, which has been found not to match the specifications.

The EC had initially said the indelible ink would last up to a week. On polling day, however, many voters found that they could wash it out within hours of having their index finger marked.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Shahidan Kassim later revealed that the ink only contained food dye and there was no silver nitrate, a critical component that makes the ink indelible.- malaysiakini

Pakatan lists 'EC duo's bias' in statement of claim...

PAS, DAP and PKR have alleged that the Election Commission’s (EC) top two and other commissioners are deemed biased and had failed in their statutory duty to ensure it acts independently from the BN government.

In the civil suit filed by senior lawyer Tommy Thomas (left), they stated that the EC was set up as a constitutional body, and should be independent, impartial to all political parties and free from interference from the executive.

They also highlighted that the EC’s failure to clean up the electoral roll and the failure of the indelible ink was enough to declare the May 5 general election as null and void.

They contended that the statements issued by the EC, namely by the top two, seemed to be favouring the BN coalition and the two are more accustomed to accepting instructions from the PM and the cabinet.

This, they argued, compromises the EC’s independence and neutrality and that the panel has adopted a partisan role favouring the ruling coalition.

'Biasedness' in Sibu by-election 

In trying to prove their case, the plaintiff that comprise of the opposition coalition, the losing Pakatan Rakyat candidates and voters, pointed out the biasedness in EC chairperson Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof and his deputy Wan Ahmad Wan Omar since the Sibu by-election in 2010 till today.

During the Sibu by-election, the EC said it had no power to investigate the allegations of corruption based on Section 10 of the Election Offences Act, when Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak (right) offered RM5 million in flood mitigation measures at the Rejang park in a move that would allegedly help BN candidate Robert Lau to win.

The duo were previously also known to be Umno members.

Wan Ahmad was also quoted at one point of time as saying that all BN parties must move forward and Najib must be satisfied with their performance, and that there was no rush for Najib to call for polls.

After the election, they alleged Abdul Aziz was quoted to have told opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim to accept the results.

On claims foreigners being allowed to vote during the May 5 polls, the EC chief had responded that some had been arrested based on how they look, and stated it was unfair to make them sing the national anthem.

The suit also highlighted the inconsistency in the stand taken by the EC in Batu MP Tian Chua's case when several days before nomination day, the EC issued a letter allowing him to contest despite the latter having a RM2,000 fine handed down to him by the Kuala Lumpur High Court in June 2010.

However, when BN candidate Dr Dominic Lau filed an election petition on the matter, the EC did not object to the petition when the point was raised, thus not recognising the decision of its own returning officer.

Reducied silver nitrate content
 
The plaintiffs also accused the EC of reducing the level of silver nitrate content in the indelible ink, resulting in it being easily washed off and thus, allowing dishonest voters to possibly vote more than once.

They further claimed that thousands of police reports were lodged over the ink not being able to last long, with the EC even admitting that there were teething problems with regard to the ink.

The plaintiffs, in their claim, also pointed out that contrary to the EC’s claim, Health Minister Dr S Subramaniam had denied that the ministry was asked by the EC to prepare a health report over the ink.

They alleged that the polemic of the indelible ink shows that the EC had “aided and abetted with dishonest voters” who attempted to impersonate others by washing off the ink.

They argued that this occurrence had resulted in massive, systemic occurrence of fraud in the general election. By being able to wash away the ink, they question the integrity of the entire voting process.

As a result of this, the plaintiffs claimed the EC had failed to discharge its public obligations as required.

Besides seeking for the results for the 222 parliamentary seats to be declared null and void, the plaintiffs are also seeking for new EC commissioners be constituted, and a free and fresh general election is held.

Besides the civil suits, some 37 election petitions have been filed by Pakatan, while all in all, there are a total of 69 election petitions filed by both BN and Pakatan.-malaysiakini

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