Saturday April 18, 2009
The high cost of holding by-elections
By YENG AI CHUN and LESTER KONG
PETALING JAYA: Many authorities have acknowledged that frequent by-elections are a costly affair for taxpayers.
Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said there had been a ‘lot of unnecessary’ by-elections lately and that they were done on purpose.
“The Opposition’s style is to tell everyone that they are still alive (via the by-elections).
“In Bukit Gantang and Batang Ai, the person died but the Bukit Selambau by-election was not necessary,” he told The Star yesterday.
Tengku Adnan said by-elections not only cost a lot of money but also wasted time.
“We should be solving the rakyat’s problems and not politicking. Barisan Nasional is not a party to politicise and be politicking,” he said.
PAS secretary-general Datuk Kamaruddin Jaafar, however, disagreed and said having by-elections was a price the country had to pay for a “functioning democracy.”
“But the Government should also be more prudent in its spending, not only in by-elections,” he said, suggesting an alternative system to by-elections whereby the chief minister or mentri besar of the state could appoint a replacement for the vacated parliamentary or state constituency.
Deputy Election Commission chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said the potential Penanti by-election could cost RM300,000 depending on the number of registered voters and the remoteness of the area.
“Although Batang Ai had only 8,000 voters, the by-election cost was high at RM400,000 because it’s in the rural interior and involved the use of helicopters,” he said.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan said the five by-elections had “swallowed” so much of the police’s funds they were forced to adjust their allocation for other projects.
“This money was to be spent on repairing police stations and buying equipment,” he said, adding that the police now require more funds from the Government.
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