by Rauf Fadzilla

Pix Credit: http://politicaladvertising.co.uk

It’s been two months since the Election Commission reported that 3.7 million Malaysians aged 21 and above have not registered as voters, and looks like they are still doing nothing about it. Nothing effective, at least. 


It’s been two months since the Election Commission reported that 3.7 million Malaysians aged 21 and above have not registered as voters, and looks like they are still doing nothing about it. Nothing effective, at least.

Viral videos can only go so far – even my 9 year old cousin can put together a great video and get viewers from all over the world via Youtube. And what about the “turun padang” campaigns they just mentioned? Are they really going to speak to our parents and tell us what naughty boys and girls we are…? Will they ask them to take out the “rotan” on us if we don’t go out on voting day to vote?

If they listen very carefully they would actually find out that the whole registration and voting process thing is too “mafan” for most of us. They really don’t get it, it’s so frustrating and troublesome to even take the first step and register as a voter.

25 year old Yeong Hong Chun said he went to register as a voter late last year. He filled out a form at a school in Bandar Utama, but when he checked later it didn't go through.
Pix credit: http://coloradoshchoolnurse.org
 
25 year old Yeong Hong Chun said he went to register as a voter late last year. He filled out a form at a school in Bandar Utama, but when he checked later it didn't go through.

"After I found out that registration was closed, I went online and checked the official Election Commission website but my name wasn't there. Then I asked my friends and they said that they needed to register 2 or 3 times just to get it. They had to physically go to the school to register again." 

He added that in his opinion, "Youngsters don't register to vote because they don't know where to go. People don't register to vote because it is troublesome, especially when the registration doesn't go through.”  

Hanis Azarea, 24, said that "I would do it if it was a click away" and that for the wired and tech savvy generation, SMS alerts and apps are a way to make the youth feel more involved and engaged in the electoral process.

Pix Credit: http://www.zakon.org

Hanis Azarea, 24, said that "I would do it if it was a click away" and that for the wired and tech savvy generation, SMS alerts and apps are a way to make the youth feel more involved and engaged in the electoral process.  

Shara A Palanivel, 23, agreed and added that technology could help make the process more convenient by automatically registering eligible voters and that "it would definitely help if I could register online." 

Now are you surprised that no one bothers to vote, or even register to vote? The authorities can hope that our parents will do their part to convince and encourage us to vote, but if they don’t do their part in hearing us out, then why should we do the same?