The legal voting age in Malaysia is 21. I was eligible to vote for the first time in 2013 in GE13, but I didn't bother registering. Not that I was ignorant about politics--I simply didn't like any of the political parties. I wasn't a big fan of the ruling government because they were racist, conservative and sometimes just plain dumb. But at the same time, I wasn't feeling too confident about the opposition either. They didn't really have a viable prime minister candidate, and were constantly having disputes among themselves. And, for as long as they wanted to make Malaysia an Islamic country, I didn't feel like giving my vote to either one of them. So I decided to just leave things as they were. Although the current government had many flaws, I felt like they were more capable and were actually doing a pretty decent job in developing the country.
However, in the last 5 years, things had taken a turn for the worse. The government was getting dumber and full of themselves. They were acting more like mobsters than ministers. Amidst the huge scandals involving the prime minister, they introduced the anti-fake-news law that would prosecute anyone who spread false news, especially if it criticized the government. And who got to decide whether the news was true or false? The government, of course. That means that this post, had it been written before the elections, could have gotten me into jail. So much for democracy. They wanted to turn us into North Korea.
I felt like I needed to do my part, and so did everyone else apparently, as a lot of people were also voting for the first time. Those who had never bothered to register before finally decided that this was the year that they should join in to make a difference. Besides, our favorite 92-year-old ex-prime minister was making a comeback to contest against the government.
I felt like I needed to do my part, and so did everyone else apparently, as a lot of people were also voting for the first time. Those who had never bothered to register before finally decided that this was the year that they should join in to make a difference. Besides, our favorite 92-year-old ex-prime minister was making a comeback to contest against the government.
The Voting Process
Voting started at 8 am and ended at 5. I was lucky because my voting station was a school that was just a 10-minute walk from my house. Upon reaching the voting station, the first thing I did was go to the registration counter to check my. I already knew from their online app but I rechecked anyway just to be sure. Then I joined the throng of people in the queue.
It took about an hour and a half for me to finally reach the voting room. There were three people sitting in a row near the door. The first one took my IC, checked my name in the register and read it aloud for everyone in the room to hear, before crossing it out from the list. The second person checked my hands for any ink mark (or was it the first person? Can't remember), and then proceeded to dip my finger into the ink pot and waited for it to dry. The third person prepared my ballot papers. Perpendicular to them were another three persons also sitting in a row, to witness the whole process.
Taking the ballot papers carefully so as not to get ink on them (any ink stain on the paper would deem the vote invalid), I walked to the ballot box and marked an X next to my chosen candidates' names, making sure the X's were of the right size. I also had to ensure that the ballot papers had serial numbers on them and were stamped. Then I put them into their respective boxes.
I left my house at 9 am, and came back at almost 11.
The Indelible Ink
What is the indelible ink for?
There had been cases in the past where people actually voted twice, in different places, using different names (sometimes names of people who were already dead). These were called ghost voters. I don't know how they did it. I thought everything was supposed to be computerized. Either the system was easily hackable or it was an inside job. Probably both. So to curb this problem, somebody came up with the brilliant idea of using indelible ink to 'mark' the voters--the same way bouncers at the club would stamp your hand to show that you had already paid the cover charge, the same way that vets would tattoo stray animals to show that they had been spayed.
Before taking the ballot paper, every voter would have their hands checked. Those with ink on any of their fingers meant they had already voted and would not be allowed to vote again. This method is probably unique to Malaysia because we apparently have the worst number of cheaters and fraudsters in the world. It became a source of amusement and even pride. Everybody would upload pictures of their inked fingers on social media to show that they had exercised their rights. The atmosphere was almost as festive as Hari Raya.
The Election Results
That night we were on transit at Changi airport en route to Athens, so we spent the entire time at the airport checking and rechecking the news and live feeds at the computer terminals. Due to the incompetency of the Elections Commission there was a serious delay in the announcement of the official results.
Although the EC was supposed to be neutral, they had shown tendencies of being pro-government. Firstly, they announced the election day to fall on a weekday. This was to deter people from returning to their hometowns to vote. Secondly, they made sure postal voters all over the world only received their ballot papers a few days before the election--some even on the day of the election itself. They were trying to stop the more educated urban young people from voting because these 21-to-30-year-olds made up the largest number of voters and were the ones who were most likely to vote for change. There were also complaints that the officials at the voting stations had deliberately made the voting process slower than usual (hence the 2-hour queue), so that fewer people could vote before the closing time. By right, they should close the gate at 5 pm but still allow voting for people who had arrived before 5 and were still queuing. Instead, they stopped the whole voting process at 5, denying hundreds of people their rights to vote.
That night we were on transit at Changi airport en route to Athens, so we spent the entire time at the airport checking and rechecking the news and live feeds at the computer terminals. Due to the incompetency of the Elections Commission there was a serious delay in the announcement of the official results.
Although the EC was supposed to be neutral, they had shown tendencies of being pro-government. Firstly, they announced the election day to fall on a weekday. This was to deter people from returning to their hometowns to vote. Secondly, they made sure postal voters all over the world only received their ballot papers a few days before the election--some even on the day of the election itself. They were trying to stop the more educated urban young people from voting because these 21-to-30-year-olds made up the largest number of voters and were the ones who were most likely to vote for change. There were also complaints that the officials at the voting stations had deliberately made the voting process slower than usual (hence the 2-hour queue), so that fewer people could vote before the closing time. By right, they should close the gate at 5 pm but still allow voting for people who had arrived before 5 and were still queuing. Instead, they stopped the whole voting process at 5, denying hundreds of people their rights to vote.
But in the face of adversity, Malaysians came together. Many companies granted special leaves for those who wanted to vote. Those who were flying back to Malaysia from overseas volunteered as runners to bring home postal votes. An online group was set up to connect these runners with the postal voters. Those who couldn't find a readily available runner appointed one and pooled money to send him home. In Malaysia, people held fundraising activities to sponsor those who didn't have the financial means to return to their hometowns. All over the internet, people were offering to buy plane tickets for strangers.
And it was all worth it, because when we arrived in Greece the next morning, we received news that our efforts had paid off. The corrupt regime that had been ruling for 60 years had finally been overthrown, and I'm proud that I was one of the people who had made it happen. I'm extremely glad I didn't miss the election, despite having a flight scheduled on the same day.
On our holiday, it was easy to spot fellow Malaysians. We only had to look at their fingers. There was an immediate sense of camaraderie when we spotted each other, although no words were exchanged. It is two months since the election, and I still have the color on my nail.
And it was all worth it, because when we arrived in Greece the next morning, we received news that our efforts had paid off. The corrupt regime that had been ruling for 60 years had finally been overthrown, and I'm proud that I was one of the people who had made it happen. I'm extremely glad I didn't miss the election, despite having a flight scheduled on the same day.
On our holiday, it was easy to spot fellow Malaysians. We only had to look at their fingers. There was an immediate sense of camaraderie when we spotted each other, although no words were exchanged. It is two months since the election, and I still have the color on my nail.
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| After one week |
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| After two months |
