KUCHING, March 25 2026: A coalition of 23 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civil societies has called on the Sarawak government to commit to staying full term till February 13, 2027, which would increase the chance for the Election Commission to complete the delineation review of the proposed electoral boundaries and implement postal voting.
“The review process includes two rounds of public notice and submission of objections (30 days) and local inquiries across the state (which may take weeks depending on the number of objections), and must not be rushed through,” they said in a statement.
They also called on the EC and the Sarawak government to do their utmost and work together to ensure the next Sarawak state election is conducted meaningfully with the new electoral maps and postal voting facility for Sarawak voters outside Sarawak.
They said the EC must publish its proposed maps as soon as possible for the constituency delimitation exercise review under Article 113(3A) of the Federal Constitution, whose two-year timeline started after July 15 2025, when the increase of Sarawak state legislative seats from 82 to 99 came into force as per the gazette on 7 July 2025.
They noted that the EC has 17 months to complete the review by July 15 2027.
“All quarters – from politicians, media practitioners, to opinion leaders – are urged to stop the misinformation that the increase of Sarawak’s state seats needs the approval of Parliament.
“The increase to 99 state seats is final. Parliament can only approve the final electoral boundary proposed by the EC, a process that has not been started.
“Any quarter that is confused on this matter is encouraged to study the provisions in Article 113 and the 13th Schedule of the Federal Constitution,” they said pointing out that whatever the cause or intention, this repeated misinformation has hurt the political self-efficacy of the Sarawak people must be stopped.
The NGOs and civil societies also urged the EC to conduct the delineation review abiding by the requirements of the 13th Schedule of the Federal Constitution, which requires “approximately equal”
numbers of voters across constituencies, with exceptions only by way of “weightage of area” [subsection 2(c)], and preservation of “local ties [subsection 2(d)].
They pointed out to the outright double standards between rural constituencies, for examples, between Baram (larger than Perak, inland) with 61,446 voters and Igan (only one third of Negeri Sembilan, coastal) with only 29,132 voters must be eliminated in the proposed maps.
They also urged the EC to provide all necessary information for the maps displayed and revisions made to facilitate the meaningful feedback of Sarawak citizens.
They said this information includes digitalized maps in KML, KMZ, and/or other formats; the land mass of every constituency; the reasons for including new polling districts (DMs) or excluding existing polling districts; and the reasons for the EC’s decision in accepting or rejecting objections by the state
government, local authorities, or any group of affected voters filed under Section 5 of the Thirteenth Schedule.
They also urged the EC to modify the boundaries of all parliamentary and state constituencies, or at least receive objections and conduct local inquiries in constituencies excluded by the EC.
“The EC has no right to exclude any Sarawakian citizens by its own decision to exclude any constituencies from its delineation review,” they said.
They also urged the EC to introduce postal voting for Sarawak voters who live in other parts of Malaysia, whether it is the peninsula, Sabah, or Labuan, saying that most of them work, study, or live outside of Sarawak because of inadequate work and educational opportunities and underdevelopment in Sarawak, as a result of centralization that caused regional imbalances against the Borneo states.
“Sarawakian voters who are forced to work, study, or live outside Sarawak must not be effectively denied their voting rights if they cannot afford the transportation costs and leave work to come home. The meaning of Sarawak’s presence in Malaysia might be called into question if voting rights for Sarawakian diaspora in other parts of Malaysia depend on their affordability, thereby creating a painful class divide.
“ At the very least, the EC must introduce postal voting for students in public universities and colleges where the implementation structure is already in place,” NGOs and civil societies said.
The NGOs and civil societies are Persatuan Pemangkin Daya Masyarakat (PPDM), Dayak National Congress (DNC), Global Human Rights Federation ( Malaysia), Jaringan Orang Asal SeMalaysia (JOAS),
Jaringan Tanah Hak Adat Bangsa Asal Sarawak (TAHABAS), Lawyer Kamek, Malaysian Action for Justice and Unity (MAJU)- Sarawak Chapter, Pemangkin Research and Persatuan Mesra Komuniti Sibuti Miri.
The others are Persatuan Pendidikan D'Wira Kuching,. Persatuan Progresif Dayak Kuching, Pertiwi Progresif, Pride Borneo, Purplelily Social Association, Saya Anak Sarawak (SAS), Sarawak AIDS Concern Society (SACS), Sarawak Dayak Iban Association (SADIA), Sarawak OKU Skills Development Association (SOSDA), Sarawak Women For Women Society (SWWS), SAVE Rivers, Society of Entrepreneurial Educational Development,The Sarawak Initiatives (TSI) and Voices of Penan (KERUAN).
