MP: Make arrangements to let Covid-19 patients in Sabah vote

SABAH POLLS | Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah has urged the Election Commission (EC) to make special arrangements to enable Covid-19 patients to vote in the Sabah state election.

She said while she agrees that those who tested positive for Covid-19 should not be allowed to come out to vote, the EC’s counterpart in Indonesia had gone the extra mile to deliver ballot boxes to hospitals to enfranchise voters.

“In Malaysia, the Perikatan Nasional government is, unfortunately, putting up barriers for voters to vote without exploring new ways of conducting elections. This is unacceptable,” Maria said in a statement yesterday.

Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced yesterday that Sabahans who have Covid-19 symptoms or are in quarantine will be allowed to vote this Saturday, but those who tested positive will not be permitted to do so.

To facilitate this, a special voting stream will be set up for those who are ill, and those under quarantine may apply for time to be escorted to the polling centre.

Read more: Sabah Decides 2020: Making sense of the players, parties and battles

Maria said she is appalled that Ismail and the EC did not think it necessary to arrange alternative measures for those with Covid-19 to vote.

“If alternative measures can be taken for those under self-quarantine, then new normal measures can be arranged to accommodate patients with Covid-19.

“For the minister to make a blanket statement to disallow them to vote is disenfranchising the rights of the citizens.

“Unless and until the patients categorically say they do not want to vote as they are very ill, access to the right to vote must be given as an option and it is not for the minister or any government to make the decision for voters on when they can or cannot vote,” she added.

The former Bersih chairperson said all efforts to make such arrangements should be done in the next few days before polling day.

She also encouraged Covid-19 patients who want to vote to sue the EC to demand that the special arrangements be made.

“I will definitely support such an action if the EC refuses to protect this right to vote,” Maria said.

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