[PHOTOS] M'sians All Over The World Are Working Together To Bring Postal Ballots Back Home
The deadline for postal ballot papers to be received by polling officers is before 5pm on voting day, 19 November.
Thousands of Malaysian voters living abroad are racing to get their postal ballots back in time for the 15th General Election (GE15)
Thankfully, countless individuals, volunteers, youth movements, and student societies all around the world are working together to carry the papers back home.
Various non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as Bersih, Undi18, VoteMalaysia, Malaysian Students' Global Alliance, and many more, have organised ballot collection drives, almost entirely through social media.
As mailing the ballots may take time, these organisations and volunteers have amazingly coordinated runners and couriers — for both international and domestic legs of the journey — to fly these ballots back home and to their respective constituencies.
The deadline for postal ballot papers to be received by polling officers (officially known as Returning Officers) is before 5pm on voting day, 19 November.
According to the Election Commission (EC), there are 48,109 Malaysians residing abroad who have registered for postal voting this GE15.
Undi18 volunteers sorting out postal votes according to their constituencies in downtown Kuala Lumpur.
Image via @undi18my (Instagram)
As seen on social media, thousands of postal ballots are making their way back from Singapore, the UK, Australia, USA, Turkiye, Morocco, Japan, China, Germany, Egypt, Qatar, and Indonesia
In Singapore, a group of volunteers have stationed themselves at 20 collection points across the island over the past week to ensure Malaysians have ample opportunity to cast their votes.
"Thank you for your service, fellow countryman and postal vote collection volunteer, Encik Abdul Rahman. May your McDonald's fries forever be sufficiently salty," wished a grateful voter in Singapore, Melizarani Selva, who dropped her ballot off yesterday, 16 November.
"As of this morning, Abdul Rahman has been sitting stealthily at McD and around Paya Lebar MRT station for seven days and collected approximately 10,000 ballots," she said.
"It is mighty impressive how Malaysians show up for each other. No matter where we are, our semangat gotong-royong remains steadfast."
Meanwhile, a postal vote collection volunteer who has also been stationed at a McDonald's at Causeway Point shopping centre in Singapore, Yuki Ng, told SAYS that, given all their effort from abroad, she hopes that all rakyat will step out to cast their votes this weekend.
Melizarani handing her postal vote to collection volunteer, Abdul Rahman, in Singapore.
Image via Melizarani T. Selva (Facebook)
Volunteer Yuki (second from the right) collecting postal votes in Singapore.
Image via Yuki Ng (Facebook)
Adding to the effort, a Malaysian pilot working with Qatar Airways has also hand-carried 300 postal votes back with him while operating a flight from Qatar to Kuala Lumpur
Selvaganesh Nadarajah told SAYS that five other Malaysians have also helped in the coordination and collection of the postal ballots across Doha city.
"It was a pleasure flying the votes back," he said, adding that he passed the ballots on to a runner from VoteMalaysia at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) on Tuesday, 15 November.
Image via @flywithsg (Instagram)
Meanwhile, in the UK and Ireland, VoteMalaysia said it has collected 6,932 ballots after opening 58 ballot collection points across 51 cities
In a statement today, 17 November, the group said two representatives will be flying the votes back on a flight departing London Heathrow Airport on the same day.
They will be handing the votes over to Undi18, United Kingdom & Ireland Malaysian Law Students' Union (KPUM), and other volunteers at Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) in downtown Kuala Lumpur to be sorted out and distributed to all parliamentary constituencies.
According to Malaysiakini, some 5,000 ballots will also be carried home by volunteers from Australia through their collection networks.
Here are more photos of the postal ballot collection drives and efforts around the world:
Edinburgh Malaysian Students' Association running a ballot collection drive at University of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Image via @emsa_uk (Instagram)
A runner from Malaysian Students' Council of Australia (MASCA) collecting ballots before flying back to Kuala Lumpur.
Image via @masca_national (Instagram)
Undi18 co-founder Tharma Pillai (right) collecting postal votes from a returning Malaysian from Bali, Indonesia.
Image via @tharmapillai (Instagram)
Bersih Hong Kong collecting ballots at a subway station in the city.
Image via Bersih Hong Kong Edition (Facebook)
Remember to practise your right to vote on Saturday too!
If it is your first time voting, here is a step-by-step guide on what to do on polling day:
Read more recent #GE15 updates here:
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