The second session of Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2022 was aired on the 20th of August 2022 and it was truly remarkable. The topic of “Why Are The Youths Not Voting?'' was debated heatedly by 10 debaters from all over Malaysia. The session was moderated by the Vice President of Bar Council Malaysia, Mr. Mohamad Ezri.
Organised by Malaysiakini and KiniEvents, the Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2022 is joined by our partners, The Delegation of the European Union to Malaysia as Collaborative Partner, Bersih as Strategic Partner and Taylor’s College as the Youth Empowerment Partner.
This event is also supported by our Co-Partners, Malaysian Institute of Debaters and Public Speaking (MIDP), UndiSabah, Undi18, Impact Malaysia, The Risers, Institute for Research and Development of Policy (IRDP), University of Malaya Students Union (UMSU) and International Islamic University Malaysia Students Union. Last but not least, our Media Partners which are KiniTV, World of Buzz, Cilisos Media and Astro Awani.
The debaters who participated in this session were between 18 to 23 years old and they have highlighted many issues that are faced by the youths when it comes to voting for the elections such as kleptocracy whereby the people in power should be punished by the law equally as regular citizens as well as the trust youth have towards Malaysian politicians are deficit.
On top of these issues, the debaters have also proposed suggestions that can combat the issues of low voter turnout and also to encourage youths to be more involved in the political arena. The statements by the debaters are still votable until the 19th of September 2022.
Muhammad Aqmar Putra, a 20 years old student from University of Bristol was awarded the Best Debater for this 2nd session. He was deemed exceptional by the panel of judges because he had strongly highlighted how Malaysia should enforce Fixed-Term Parliament Act due to Malaysia’s inconsistent general election dates and should follow the examples of other countries such as the United States of America, who has general elections on the first Thursday in May every five years.
The Best Debater was selected by representatives of the organiser and the partners. The panel of judges were Chandran Ravi, Chief Operations Officer of Malaysiakini; Norman Goh, Press and Information Officer of The Delegation of the European Union to Malaysia; Mohd Muttaqin, Programme Director of Foundation of Business from Taylor’s College; and Azim Nadzari, Head, Training & Development of MIDP.
The judges collectively agreed that the young debaters had some great points such as the youths are tired of being monopolised by the rulemakers. Not only that, the debaters also highlighted that young voters are expected to vote as early as the age of 18 without proper basic knowledge regarding the political situation in Malaysia which causes most youths to feel they are not ready to vote. A few debaters suggested there should be proper education given to the youths in schools and universities in order to prepare them for voting in the upcoming elections.
“The debaters in this round were very fiery and were not shy to quickly point fingers towards the government’s let down. They also gave some realistic suggestions on how to get youths to vote. Most importantly, what was pointed out was the need for a tough leader who can ensure a clean government, wipe out kleptocrats and connect with the youths.” Chandran Ravi, COO of Malaysiakini said.
Vote for the debaters’ statements and also your favourite debaters from now until 19th September 2022. To better understand the debaters’ statements and suggestions, you can watch the replay of the session here. The Most Popular Debater Award winner will be announced on 20th September 2022.
Recruitment to participate as a debater for the 3rd virtual session of Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2022 is now OPEN and all submissions must reach the organiser by 30th August 2022 (Wednesday). No payment is required for the submissions.
We look forward to receiving your entries and don’t miss out on the golden opportunity to debate as Member of Parliaments yourself!
About Youth Parliamentary Debathon
The Youth Parliamentary Debathon series aims to empower youths aged 16-25, and discusses important issues in Malaysia through a parliamentary simulation where participants will play the role of parliamentarians. Through this program, the youths have the opportunity to increase their awareness and knowledge of the law-making process, thus exposing them to the rules, procedures and ethics that need to be adhered to in every parliamentary proceedings. Visit the website to find out more!
The 2022 Youth Parliamentary Debathon is organised by Malaysiakini, KiniTV and KiniEvents. Event Partners include The Delegation of the European Union to Malaysia, Bersih, Taylor’s College, Malaysian Institute of Debaters and Public Speaking (MIDP), UndiSabah, Undi18, Impact Malaysia, The Risers, and Institute for Research and Development of Policy (IRDP), University of Malaya Students Union, International Islamic University Malaysia Students Union, KiniTV, World of Buzz, Cilisos Media and Astro Awani. To find out more about partnership opportunities with Parliamentary Debathon 2022, please email us at [email protected]
