PEKAN: The old-fashioned mindset of not placing trust in the younger generation is no longer in line with the current political development in the country, says Communication and Multimedia Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah.
He said the problem in most political parties is the lack of confidence in the ability of the young and giving them the mandate to make choices for the future.
"This is the problem....we do not trust the young but at the same time, we want their support (votes). I am in full support of the implementation of 'Undi 18' as 18 is the age of maturity and they should be given the trust....Undi 18 has been unanimously agreed upon by the Dewan Rakyat.
"However, if there are setbacks in the implementation (lowering the voting age to 18) in the near future, then it could be due to approval at the state assembly level (where states need to amend their constitutions), so we understand," he said when asked to comment on the Undi 18 movement which has been making waves on social media.
He was speaking at a press conference after attending the "Malaysia Prihatian" programme organised by the ministry here today.
Saifuddin said when the state assembly sitting resumes, he hopes the Undi 18 issue can be approved so that it can be implemented without further delay.
"I have always been supportive of Undi 18 and hope it will be sorted out soon.....if there are those who oppose Undi 18, then they are certainly old-fashioned. I believe the Election Commission (EC) is prepared to implement Undi 18 once it is approved," he said.
Meanwhile, Saifuddin, who is the Pahang Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman, said the state liaison committee will hold their inaugural meeting on March 26.
The Pahang Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) chief said the first formal meeting, which also involves Pas and Gerakan, follows their informal meeting which was held last week.
"We met last week and have agreed to organise a meeting on March 26 to pave the way for the setting up of PN in Pahang. The relationship in PN component parties has always been strong and we have strong ties at the grassroots level," he said.
Asked about the absence of Umno in the meeting, Saifuddin said the meeting only discussed matters involving the cooperation between Bersatu, Pas dan Gerakan, and did not involve topics beyond their control including cooperation with Umno.
