KUALA LUMPUR: The move to lower the voting age to 18 must be accompanied by efforts to boost political awareness and political literacy among young voters.
Political analysts said the move to spur democracy would only be effective if teenagers understood the importance of voting.
Professor Dr Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani said the Education Ministry and Election Commission had important roles to play in boosting awareness among teen voters, even though the move to lower the voting age was being spearheaded by the Youth and Sports Ministry.
“There is a need to introduce formal and informal education at the secondary school level to create awareness on the importance of voting among youths if the voting age is lowered to 18, a year after they complete their Form Five studies.
“They need to be educated on the nation’s politics and political literacy before they leave school.
“Hence, it will be challenging for the Education Ministry and EC (Election Commission) to find an equilibrium in creating political awareness among youths without politicising the schooling system,” the Universiti Utara Malaysia political analyst said.
Azizuddin also proposed that the country emulate the success of other countries, such as Singapore and Indonesia, which had lowered the voting age.
“Educating the youth on the importance of voting, why their rights is important and how they could contribute to nation building will not take much time,” said Associate Professor Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi.
“In fact, in my estimation, it can be carried out in less than 16 minutes,” he said.
Awang Azman said Malaysia’s move to lower the voting age was not something new as it had been implemented in other countries.
“There are also countries where the voting age has been lowered to 16,” he said, adding that Malaysia was decades behind in doing so.
Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih 2.0) chairman Thomas Fann said with an expected increase of up to four million voters by the next general election, lawmakers would need to come out with policies that catered to the aspirations of these younger constituents.
“The voices of the youth will not only be heard, but must be taken into account if any party (political) wants to gain political power through their votes.
“This will spur some of these younger voters to take a greater interest in politics and to voice out on issues affecting youths and the country.”
Rise of Sarawak Efforts chairman Ann Teo said the move was important as youths were the ones who would shape the future of the nation.