Malaysian police probe vote-buying claims ahead of Negeri Sembilan state poll

Malaysian police are investigating three reports of alleged vote-buying ahead of Saturday’s Negeri Sembilan state election.Negeri Sembilan police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Alzafny Ahmad said on Friday two reports had been lodged in Seremban and one in Port Dickson.The first involved a 69-year-old man from Sikamat, who claimed a group of men handed him 300 ringgit (US$74) in cash to vote for a particular candidate.“The men, who arrived in a car, allegedly gave him the money in an envelope before taking a photograph of his identity card. He was then instructed to vote for a particular candidate.”Alzafny said the second report was lodged by a 40-year-old man after he saw a video showing people queuing at a programme in Bukit Pelanduk, where they were allegedly given envelopes containing cash.The third report was made by a 72-year-old man after he saw a WhatsApp video allegedly showing a candidate for the Labu seat distributing cash.All three cases are being investigated under Section 11 of the Election Offences Act 1954.Ahmad Zahid Hamidi gives a speech to Negeri Sembilan community leaders and village heads on Thursday. Photo: Facebook/zahidhamidi.fanpageSeparately, police have also opened an investigation after a 72-year-old man in Tampin lodged a report over a TikTok video claiming police personnel involved in Wednesday’s early voting were each paid 300 ringgit to support a particular political party.Alzafny said the complainant believed the allegation was defamatory and could create a negative perception of the police.The case is being investigated under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code for making statements conducive to public mischief and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 for the improper use of network facilities or services.Alzafny said police had received 89 reports related to election offences since nomination day on July 18 and had opened 23 investigation papers.Further ReadingBarisan Nasional Chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi called for prompt investigations into allegations of vote-buying on Thursday, Free Malaysia Today news portal reported.“As the situation becomes more desperate, various tactics are being used in the final stages of the campaign. I hope the authorities will take immediate action,” said Zahid, who is also Malaysia’s deputy prime minister.This article was first published by The StarAdditional reporting by SCMP’s Asia desk