By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — PKR today demanded the Election Commission (EC) chairman and deputy chairman resign from their posts, and has furnished evidence to show that the two are still Umno members.
Both EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof and his deputy Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar have admitted that they could have been Umno members a long time ago, but stressed that it did not affect their ability to carry out their professional duties.
They took great pains to point out that it (being Umno members) happened a long time ago, and that they were inactive members, having not paid any fees or attended any party meetings.
“Both of them have to resign their positions in the EC immediately.
“PKR is concerned... as these two gentlemen are expected to run free and fair elections in Malaysia,” PKR secretary-general Datuk Saifuddin Nasution (picture) said in a statement today.
He said both Abdul Aziz and Wan Ahmad had failed the basic requirement needed to run an organisation like the EC — being impartial and non-partisan.
Saifuddin said Abdul Aziz and Wan Ahmad’s Umno membership details are as follows:
Abdul Aziz:
Umno membership number: 113804
Branch code: 09920036 (Sri Ampang Baru)
Assembly seat code: 09920 (Lembah Jaya)
Division code: 009 (Ampang)
State: Selangor
Wan Ahmad:
Umno membership number: 2374564
Branch Code: 02213049 (Kubang Bunggor)
Assembly seat code: 02213 (Chetok)
Division code 022 (Pasir Mas)
State: Kelantan
The duo have come under intense scrutiny in the past year over claims of fraud in election practices and the electoral roll as federal polls draw near.
“I know Aziz’s membership number and I have information on which branch Tan Sri Aziz and his deputy are from.
“This is the only EC in the world where its chief and his deputy are officially members of a party that contests elections,” Saifuddin had said yesterday.
The EC was heavily criticised in the lead-up to Bersih’s rally for free and fair elections on July 9 last year in which tens of thousands flooded the streets of the capital in chaotic scenes that saw over 1,500 arrested, scores injured and the death of an ex-soldier.
Widespread condemnation of the Najib administration’s clampdown saw Putrajaya make major concessions including announcing a bipartisan Parliamentary Select Committee to look into improving the electoral system.
During the committee’s six-month tenure, Pakatan Rakyat (PR) accused the EC of not being committed to reforms and eventually rejected the panel’s findings.
Early this month, Bersih, a coalition of 84 civil societies, also announced a sit-in protest at Dataran Merdeka for tomorrow, saying the findings of the select committee were disappointing and did not meet its demands for electoral reform.
Abdul Aziz became EC chairman on January 2009 while Wan Ahmad was appointed in 2007.