THE opposition will only back the government’s efforts to allow 18-year-olds to vote if it includes automatic voter registration and lowering the age for election candidates in the bill’s wording, said Umno secretary-general Annuar Musa.

“If the government rectifies its amendment bill, the opposition has no qualms about supporting it.

“They can add these additional amendments in the second reading before the debate,” the Ketereh MP told reporters at the Parliament lobby today.

Otherwise, the opposition will reject the proposed constitutional amendment if the additional changes are not in place before the debate begins next week, he said.

Pakatan Harapan last Thursday tabled a bill to amend Article 119 (1) (a) to lower the minimum voting age to 18.

The opposition, Barisan Nasional PAS and Gabungan Parti Sarawak, however, have said they will only back the constitutional amendment if the government also agrees to include automatic voter registration and amend Article 47 to lower the age of election candidates to 18.

The government said it would allow for automatic registration of voters after the PH presidential council meeting yesterday.

But Annuar said Umno wants this to be reflected in the bill itself and not as a promise to do so later on.

“PAS, BN and GPS already decided that the constitutional amendment should not be piecemeal so that it doesn’t contradict other sections hence we also asked for Article 47 to be amended.

“Hence we asked the government to rectify its amendment bill.”

The bill’s second reading is scheduled for July 16 and will be tabled by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

PH, together with allies in Sabah, currently has 139 MPs and is nine votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to amend the federal constitution. – July 9, 2019.