SARAWAK Tourism Minister Abdul Karim Hamzah said while he might concur with the Sultan of Johor that a person is too young at age 18 to be the people’s representative, the state would not be tweaking its constitution to reflect that.

“I like the way the sultan (Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar) looked at it but the state has adopted (to be in line) with what had been passed in Parliament,” he said when asked by reporters today.

In his opening address of the state assembly, Sultan Ibrahim said he did not consent to the Johor State (Amendment) Enactment 2021 to lower the minimum age to 18 when the bill was presented to him for assent.

The sultan said it was not in line with the direction of the government that wants high-quality and knowledgeable leaders.

“(They are) still a bit raw,” said Karim.

Karim tabled the bill in the Sarawak legislative assembly in November 2020 to lower the voting age from 21 to 18.

The bill was passed with the required two-thirds majority. – June 22, 2022.