EC chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Hashim Abdullah denies that September 30 is the last day for new voters to register in order to vote should the 14th general elections be held next March. — Picture by Choo Choy May

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 — The Election Commission (EC) today denied a viral message claiming that September 30 is the last day for new voters to register and be eligible to vote in the 14th general elections if it were to take place in March 2017.

EC chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said in a statement that September 30 was only the end date for 2016’s third quarter registrations list, and that the EC will enter its fourth quarter list of registrations beginning October 1.

“In regards to the viral message that September 30, 2016, this Friday, is the closing date for registering and qualifying a person’s as a voter in the 14th general election should it take place in March 2017 is merely the assumption of certain quarters and is not true,” he said.

“The EC conducts a year long registration system whereby the public can still continue to register after September 30, 2016.”

Mohd Hashim added that people are advised to register as early as they can, and not wait until the last minute.

“EC encourages members of the public who have not registered as a voter to take the opportunity to register immediately without waiting until the last minute or simply because of a viral message,” he said.

“Registering as a voter and voting during an election is a responsibility as a citizen.”

He also clarified that registration will require the registering person to be present for the process, and not to fall for other viral messages that claim to register a person by sending images of your identification card over short messaging system (SMS) or the WhatsApp application.