PAS Youth is demanding for political parties to be allowed to campaign among postal voters, particularly in the upcoming Bagan Pinang by-election.

In a memorandum sent to the Election Commission (EC) headquarters in Putrajaya yesterday, PAS Youth information chief Suhaizan Kayat said currently, opposition parties had no access to postal voters in military camps.

"Barisan Nasional on the other hand always uses the Defence Ministry's mechanisms to meet and hold activities for army personnel.

"This situation is unfair to the opposition parties who cannot disseminate information to them," he said in the memorandum.

Postal votes crucial

Should security reasons be cited, Suhaizan said, the onus was on EC to provide avenues for the opposition parties to reach out to military personnel.

Of the 13,664 voters in Bagan Pinang, a third of which or 4,604 comprise postal voters who would cast their ballots before voting day on Oct 11.

Postal voters are made up of servicemen who generally vote BN in overwhelming numbers.

As BN’s majority was about 2,000 votes during the last polls, canvassing for postal votes has become an integral part of PAS’ strategy to wrest the state seat in Negeri Sembilan.

Suhaizan stressed that PAS would go all out to canvass postal voters.

"We will seek permission from army camp commandants to enter their premises to campaign. If that is denied, we can even campaign next to the fence," he told Malaysiakini.

Previously, PAS had urged EC to drop a requirement that would compromise the anonymity in postal voting.

Known as the 'Borang 2', serial numbers can be found on the voter’s ballot slip which could then be traced back to the counterfoil which notes the voter’s personal information.