No alleged counting of ballots in Bagan Datuk after early voting: EC

PUTRAJAYA: The Election Commission today strongly dismissed an allegation that ballots collected in the Bagan Datuk parliamentary constituency were counted after the completion of early-voting nationwide last Saturday in the general election.
EC chairman Tan Sri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said the ballots collected during early-voting would only be counted from 4 pm on polling day on May 9 at the early-voting counting centres stipulated by the EC.
"Before counting begins, the EC will officially notify all the relevant quarters, particularly the candidates, to be present to witness the counting process," he said in a statement.
He said an EC investigation showed that all the election staff had adhered to the stipulated procedures for early-voting in Bagan Datuk.
Once early-voting concluded at 5 pm, the EC staff sealed all the ballot boxes in front of the agents of the candidates and took the boxes for safekeeping at the Hutan Melintang Police Station," he said.
Mohd Hashim said that while storing the ballot boxes, a group of people including a candidate questioned the process of safekeeping, alleging irregularities by the EC staff.
The EC felt that the disturbance was created on purpose to cause a stir among the people with the aim of getting the attention of the voters, he said.
Mohd Hashim said that for the record, the number of early voters at the Hutan Melintang military camp was 1,541 but 508 voters chose to be postal voters.
He said that of the 1,033 early voters eligible to vote last Saturday, only 825 turned up. — Bernama