BERA: The Election Commission (EC) has the right to postpone the 15th General Election (GE15) in the event that major floods occur during the campaign period.
Caretaker Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said he would convene a meeting and make a decision if the situation compelled the commission to halt the Nov 19 election.
The government, he said, has made early preparation for possible floods to ensure the safety of the people and avoid any untoward incident.
"Two months before the dissolution of the Parliament, a meeting attended either by the menteri besar (and chief ministers) or the state secretaries were held to ensure the country's preparations to face any possibility of floods are at the optimum level.
"The (federal) government is ready to face any eventuality.
"If the situation poses a risk and prevents voters from casting their ballots in safe manner, I will discuss with the EC to seek an alternative solution to this issue," he after attending a "Kenduri Rakyat" in Kemayan here today.
Ismail Sabri, who is Barisan Nasional's (BN) candidate for the Bera parliamentary seat, said he had been briefed on preparations by the police to face the floods before the nomination of candidates.
"The government and all agencies involved have identified flood-prone areas and locations to active temporary evacuation centres," he said.
Earlier today, Ismail Sabri, in his campaign trail, spent time with villagers at the Kerayong market.
In GE15, he is in a three-cornered fights in his bid to retain the seat which he has held since 2004.
National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) deputy director-general (post-disaster management) Datuk Khairul Shahril Idrus had previously said the EC had the authority to cancel or postpone polling for flood-hit areas in the wake of the northeast monsoon season, which is expected to begin in the middle of this month.
It was also reported that 69,235 security and rescue personnel were available to handle possible flood disasters in the country.
The government had identified 2,010 of the 6,010 flood evacuation centres nationwide, which could also be used as voting centres.
