ELECTION education in schools will not involve “indoctrination” of pupils, Election Commission chairman Azhar Azizan Harun said today.

The EC has prepared a module on election simulation for pupils, as part of its agreement with the Education Ministry last year to include election education in the national school curriculum.

“The module is ready and it we will make it public so that no can raise the allegation that we are trying to indoctrinate pupils. 

“We’re not in the business of indoctrinating anybody, but we want to want educate them,” he said at a meeting in Putrajaya.

The EC will be going to 2,400 schools to introduce the module, which teaches pupils about the voting process.

The move follows a constitutional amendment last year to lower the voting age to 18.

With the passing of the bill, 18-year-olds are eligible to vote at the 15th general election. They will also be registered automatically as voters on their 18^th birthday.

Azhar said the EC will prioritise voter education now that 18-year-olds are allowed to vote.

“Voter education is top of our priority. We will be going to schools to engage with form four students to hold election simulations. 

“We already did a trial run last year at one of the schools and it was very well received. 

“After that, many schools wrote to us to do it.”

The 15th general election, to be held by mid-2023, will see seven million new voters going to the polls, following recent changes to the country’s voting laws. – January 22, 2020.