Abdul Karim: Election Commission’s statement is correct

KUCHING: The Election Commission (EC) is correct in stating that there is currently no proposal to increase Sarawak’s parliamentary constituencies, says Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.

The Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts said the issue being pursued by Sarawak is the increase in state constituencies from 82 to 99, not an ongoing EC proposal to create additional parliamentary seats.

“What has been done so far is the increase of the State constituencies from 82 to 99. The State Legislative Assembly has already passed the Bill and it is now awaiting endorsement by Parliament,” said Abdul Karim, who is also Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) information chief.

His clarification follows the EC’s statement dismissing a local newspaper report claiming Sarawak’s parliamentary seats would rise from 31 to 46 under a proposed redelineation exercise linked to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).

EC’s Secretary, Datuk Khairul Shahril Idrus said the commission has only prepared recommendations for the Seventh Sarawak Electoral Constituency Redelineation Review, which are currently on public display throughout September.

He stressed that no proposal exists to increase parliamentary constituencies and urged the public to rely on official EC statements and its portal for accurate information.

Abdul Karim explained that any increase in parliamentary seats falls entirely under the jurisdiction of the federal government and Parliament, not the EC.

He said Sarawak’s request for additional parliamentary representation has indeed been raised during MA63 negotiations and has also received public support from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim during his Malaysia Day speech this year.

“However, it has not been brought to Parliament yet. It is for the federal government and Parliament to act on this request,” he said.

He added that the EC would only become involved after Parliament amends the Federal Constitution to increase the number of parliamentary seats allocated to Sarawak and Sabah.

“Only then will the EC conduct the delineation exercise,” he said.

Abdul Karim also reminded the public that, under the Federal Constitution, electoral redelineation exercises can only be carried out once every eight years when necessary.

The controversy arose after the local Malay-language newspaper reported that a purported EC document outlined plans to increase Sarawak’s parliamentary constituencies from 31 to 46, a claim the commission has categorically denied.