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 Arising out of the recently concluded general elections, the Bar Council notes the high number of complaints (from individual voters, candidates and political parties of all persuasions) regarding the supervision and management by the Election Commission of the elections. These complaints include the use of 2 different electoral rolls in some cases, voters whose names were not found on the relevant rolls, the Sg Lembing fiasco where misprints occurred on ballot papers, the highly questionable extension of voting hours announced at the last minute for polling stations in Selangor, and so on.

In addition, questions concerning the efficiency and true independence of the Election Commission have been raised, e.g in relation to the monitoring of the use and abuse of the media and governmental machineries for election purposes.

These concerns must be promptly investigated and addressed. The Bar Council supports the calls, made by both ruling and opposition parties, for an independent Commission of Enquiry to be set up to investigate these matters. This Commission should be mandated with wide and adequate terms of reference, comprise members of credibility and acceptability to all quarters, carry out its investigations in an open and transparent manner, and make public its findings and recommendations. This is the only acceptable way to address concerns of such importance and magnitude in a democratic society. An internal investigation within the Election Commission, as suggested by some, will be no satisfactory answer.

Free and fair elections are a pre-requisite to a credible democracy. In light of the nature and number of complaints that have surfaced, only a transparent and independent audit will meet the demands of credibility and legitimacy in a democratic Malaysia.

Dated: 3^rd April 2004

Hj Kuthubul Zaman Bukhari
Chairman
Bar Council