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Malaysia boosts election body's independence

Malaysia's leader says the Election Commission will be placed under Parliament's watch to boost confidence in its independence after recent national elections sparked fraud allegations

The Jakarta Post

Malaysia

Sat, June 1, 2013 Published on Jun. 1, 2013 Published on 2013-06-01T19:05:29+07:00

M

alaysia's leader says the Election Commission will be placed under Parliament's watch to boost confidence in its independence after recent national elections sparked fraud allegations.

Prime Minister Najib Razak's coalition won May 5 polls, but with a smaller parliamentary majority. It also lost the popular vote to Anwar Ibrahim's opposition alliance.

The opposition has accused the commission, which comes under the prime minister's department, of being biased and failing to address irregularities that it said helped Najib's coalition cling to power. The opposition has held many peaceful rallies nationwide to press for investigations into the alleged fraud.

Najib, who has rejected the fraud accusations, said Saturday that a bipartisan parliamentary committee that includes opposition lawmakers will now be given oversight over the Election Commission.