Bersih 2.0 slams call for EC chairman to quit

KUALA LUMPUR (March 6): The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih 2.0) has denounced Election Commission (EC) deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar’s call for the current commission’s chairman Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun and other commissioners to resign owing to a change in government.

“His proposal for the EC to resign along with the Prime Minister was not only an attack on the EC's integrity, but also an attack on the Federal Constitution and our democracy,” Bersih 2.0's steering committee said in a statement on Friday.

The election watchdog said the EC is a constitutional body whose chairman and other commissioners are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in accordance with Article 114(1) of the Federal Constitution.

“The EC members only cease to hold office if they attain 66 years old or have been fired by the [Agong],” it added.

Article 114(3) states that a commissioner “shall not be removed from office except on the grounds and in the like manner as a judge of the Federal Court”, which required a tribunal to prove that there were wrongdoings affecting the EC’s objectives, said Bersih 2.0.

“Datuk Wan Ahmad's call for Datuk Azhar Harun and other Commissioners to resign is illogical as if our Chief Justice Tan Sri Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat is similarly urged to resign, just because Tun Dr Mahathir who proposed all their names for the appointment by the [Agong] has resigned,” it said.

According to Bersih 2.0, by asking Azhar and the commissioners to step down, Wan Ahmad had revealed not just his superficial knowledge of democracy and the Constitution but also his self-perception as a political appointee during his stint as the EC’s secretary from 1998 to 2004 and then as its deputy chair from 2004 to 2013.

“No wonder the EC, during the years of 1998-2013, had failed to convince the people that they discharged their duty independently and with integrity,” it added.

The non-governmental organisation said it did not see any misconduct by the current EC, but had in fact observed several reforms and commendable responses to election-related issues.

These include requiring candidates to pledge non-violation to the Election Offenses Act, verifying the existence of registered voters aged 90 or above to purge ghost voters, warning the government not to use government machinery and resources for campaign, and so forth.

“Overall, the EC today is better, more transparent and open than the EC during the Barisan Nasional era,” it said.

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