Monday February 18, 2008
Independent spirit
Stories by S.S. YOGA
Independent candidates invariably add colour and spice to any general election.
THE excitement picks up as Malaysians ready themselves for polling day on March 8. With about three weeks to go, there are more ways than one to exercise your rights. Though you may not be a member of any political party, you still have the right to stand for elections – as an independent!
Some independent candidates do it for the ideals they believe in, others do it out of frustration with the incumbent, and yet others do it for the heck of it. Sometimes independent candidates are sent into the “battle” as part of a political strategy to split votes.
Author and motivational speaker Billi P.S. Lim, 53, is a veteran of two elections. He stood as an independent in the Bukit Bintang parliamentary constituency (in the Federal Territory) in the 2004 and 1999 elections. His platform for the first election: converting the area into a major tourist spot; for the second, he aimed to improve the quality of life of its denizens.
Lim had hoped his other pulling factor was that he did not have to toe any party line and would only be answerable to his constituents. Did the guy with the trademark Master Q (the popular Chinese comic book character) hairstyle garner the votes? Well, in 1999 there were 198 voters who thought he could deliver. Lim claimed it was due to several mistakes, partially because he was a beginner. After “learning” from his mistakes, Lim scooped 132 votes in the last elections.
Lim said he learnt two things: firstly, you have to be known to the electorate; secondly, they need to know the services you have rendered.
“Unless you’re the incumbent, they would hardly know the extent of your service in the constituency. Anyway, I have not yet decided on standing this time but, if I do, my campaign will be out of this world, something out of the box,” said Lim, who admitted that standing for elections was also good publicity for him and his books, including the saleable Dare to Fail.
Another independent candidate in 2004 was K. Ganesh who stood in the Jawi state seat in Penang (a three-way fight). The kacang putih man garnered 710 votes.
One independent candidate in Sarawak even had the privilege of using helicopters to get around. Josephine Randum Mawat was no ordinary independent but a proxy candidate of the now defunct Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak , a former Barisan Nasional component party that split into two factions.
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Is this a joke? Billi P.S. Lim drew attention with his trademark Master Q hairstyle but lost miserably in the 2004 general election in which he was an independent candidate for the Bukit Bintang parliamentary seat. |
Costs involved
There is an additional deposit that candidates have to cough up – RM5,000 and RM3,000 (for parliamentary and state seats, respectively) – to put up posters, banners and flags.
This deposit is forfeited if the candidate fails to remove the campaign materials within 14 days after the election results are gazetted. The money is then given to the local authorities to cover the costs of removing those items.
The Election Commission imposed the ceiling to discourage “questionable” candidates. Still, some think independent candidates add colour and zest, and increase public interest in the elections.
There were more independent candidates in Sabah and Sarawak than in the Peninsula. Of the 31 independents who contested parliamentary seats in the last election, 18 were in Sabah/Labuan and 10 in Sarawak. For state seats, there were 13 independents in Peninsular Malaysia.
For the Sabah state contest, there were 73 independents out of 203 candidates. This is almost three times the number of independents who contested in the previous elections. There were 51 seats contested and 13 involved three-way scuffles, 12 in five-way skirmishes, eight in four-cornered slug-outs, two in six-sided battles, and one whopping seven-way clash and eight-way combat each!
Sarawak’s state elections were held in May 2006, in which 20 independent candidates contested in 16 seats – a big reduction from the previous elections. Independent candidate Gabriel Adit Demong, the former vice-president of Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak, won. He was the incumbent under PBDS.
There was more one-on-one action then (54 compared to 22 before), and the next most common were three-cornered fights. But there was also a four-cornered fight and a five-way battle.
Is there something in the water over there that spurs people to put their money where their mouth is, politically?
Political scientist Prof Dr Francis Loh, who analysed the Sabah political situation, told The Star previously that one has to look at the historical context of the politics there.
“The political parties there have weak political infrastructure and most of them were personality-dominated. They played a facilitating role after Independence and many of them have fallen by the wayside. So in 1985 many novice groups got together, many who just got back from England and made a breakthrough, for example, Datuk Yong Teck Lee.
“Also, in both states, most of the political parties are BN components, so some of them might sponsor an independent to act as a spoiler. Then some contest as they feel they have not been recognised by the political parties and they try to attract their attention. It’s a worthwhile investment as some of them are picked by the parties the next time,” said Prof Loh.
In Sabah, novice independent Chong Hon Min caused an upset by defeating the BN incumbent in Sandakan quite handsomely for a parliamentary seat. The former bank manager said it was his close involvement in community service that clinched it.
For the state seat of Kuala Penyu, popular former Sabah Umno deputy information chief Datuk John Ghani stood as an independent and defeated the incumbent, Datuk Wences Anggang.
Both the independents said their heart was with the Barisan Nasional and they hoped to join the coalition. But the BN has imposed the ruling that an individual who has stood against a BN candidate is not allowed to join the fold.
Prof Loh said it has become more difficult for independents to win, as the BN machinery in Sabah and Sarawak has become more efficient.
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Vote for me: Kacang putih seller K. Ganesh showing an election poster to customers at his stall in Nibong Tebal, Penang, where he stood as an independent candidate in the 2004 general election. He garnered 710 votes. |
Confirming candidacy
Candidates have an hour, between 9am and 10am on Feb 24, to send in their nominations to the returning officer.
Supporters have to stand 50m away (from the nomination centre) and no hailers are allowed. And on the off chance that the candidate, independent or otherwise, changes his/her mind about standing, they have three days after submitting their nominations to withdraw.
Candidates are reminded that campaign materials cannot be on display before nomination day and campaigning is only allowed after nomination day.
The candidate, whether he/she wins or loses, has to submit the statement for the election expenses within 31 days after the results are gazetted.
If they fail to do so, they have committed an offence and will be automatically rejected when they try to stand for the next election.
There are more do’s and don’ts for candidates, and many of them come under the Election Offences Act 1954 which was amended in 2001.
Related Stories:
How to be a candidate
Ancient symbols
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