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KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 (Bernama) -- The government did not instruct the Election Commission (EC) to scrap its plan of using indelible ink in the last general election.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said, although in principle the government made the decision, it was delivered in the form of an opinion and not instruction.

The final say was still at the discretion of the EC which handles elections in Malaysia, he said.

"It is true the matter became a topic of discussion in the Cabinet because we had several information in relation to it, among them was certain people having brought the ink although they had no authority to do so.

"And we suspected the ink would be used in ways that could lead to confusion and give rise to difficult situations, could bring problems to the voting process on that day," he said.

He was commenting on a statement by EC Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman that the Cabinet did not approve the use of indelible ink although the EC had initially agreed to use it.

Abdullah said the government had received reports that using the ink would bring about several problems and therefore, it was cancelled after taking into account certain factors.

"I say this, either we proceed with it and let things happen as a result or we abort the plan because it will ensure no problems.

"The election ran smoothly, the results have been announced and everybody has accepted it so, why should it be made an issue," he said.

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