Since 2011, the government has been earnestly pushing for illegal migrant workers to register under its 6P amnesty and biometric registration program. Many questions have been raised about its motives in doing so.

Ampang MP Zuraida told the media last August that illegal immigrants were being made to take an oath of allegiance to support Umno and BN in order to be part of the amnesty programme.

There are an estimated two million registered migrant workers and with an equally large number of illegal ones in Malaysia. Most of them are working in the Selangor and Kuala Lumpur area.

The presence of such large number of migrant workers in the two states raises the question if they would be registered as Malaysian citizens and voters. Indeed since 2008 there has been an unusually large increase of number of voters in Selangor.

Since 1990, the national rate for increase of voters between general elections (GE) has averaged around 8.50 percent, with the highest figure of 13 percent recorded in the period of 1990-1995.

From 2008 to September 2011, Selangor registered a 20 percent increase in voters. An analysis of the voters increase by parliamentary seat breakdown (refer table) shows unusually large increases in the seats won marginally by PR in the 2008 GE.

In the rural and sparsely populated constituency of Hulu Selangor, there has been an increase of 24 percent. By comparison, the densely populated PJ North seat saw an increase of 5,603 voters, a 7 percent hike.

Engineering A Fraud

Past cases of electoral engineering have been well documented in showing how sudden increases of number of voters has helped BN win back states it lost.

In 1990 PBS left BN. Sabah, which was then ruled by PBS, witnessed a 17.6 percent increase in registered voters from 1990 to 1994. As a result, in the 1994 state elections, PBS narrowly won the state elections. Within two weeks of the elections, Sabah fell to BN after PBS ADUNs defected.

In 1999, PAS won Terengganu with 28 seats to BN’s four seat tally. Voter turnout was around 81 percent.

From 1999 to 2004, the number of voters in the state increased by 18 percent against 6 percent for the national rate. In the 2004 GE, voter turnout reached 87 percent. PAS lost the state with a reverse tally of 4 to 28 for BN.

The two past precedents portend an insidious omen for Selangor. The presence of the unusually large number of voters in Selangor is matter of grave concern.

Citizens of Selangor, indeed all of Malaysia even, stand to lose all that was gained in 2008. Unless the electoral roll is cleaned up, Selangor may be the next victim of this impending electoral fraud. –The Rocket