ALL prospective Barisan Nasional (BN) candidates for the 15th general election will be vetted, including by religious department, before they can be allowed to contest, caretaker Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said.

He said the vetting by religious authorities, to be done for the first time ahead of the polls, is aimed at ensuring the prospective candidates are not among those involved in shariah cases, including matrimonial issues.

“Screening will be undertaken with the police, MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission), the Insolvency Department, and maybe this time around with the religious department.

“Maybe we have to check with the kadi’s office too to know if any of the candidates were married in Thailand, or did not pay child support or has a pending judgment at a shariah court.

“We never checked all of these before, but this time around, we will go into details,” he told a press conference after attending a special briefing on the general election and the northeast monsoon at Bukit Aman today.

On the application of Parti Bangsa Malaysia to become BN’s component party, Ismail said the matter was still under consideration.

The Election Commission has set November 19 for polling, November 5 for nomination and November 15 for early voting. – Bernama, October 25, 2022.