Former Umno Youth vice-chief Khairul Azwan Harun said 18-year-olds were mature enough to choose the government.
“Lowering the voting age to 18 would give early exposure to these youngsters on their rights as Malaysians. It would give them an opportunity to decide on the government that would help them to achieve their aspirations in life,” the Dewan Negara senator told FMT.
Syed Saddiq, who is also the PPBM Youth chief, recently met with Attorney-General Tommy Thomas to discuss possible amendments to the law to allow 18-year-olds to vote.
“I will fight for this in the Cabinet and the Parliament.
“It’s sad that countries like the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, US, UK, France and many more recognise the intellect and maturity of their 18-year-olds but, in Malaysia, there are still some who call them stupid or immature,” he said in an Instagram post.
Some 40% of the Malaysian electorate are aged between 21 and 39, according to the Election Commission.
Syed Saddiq told Bloomberg recently that lowering the minimum age to 18 would add an additional 3.7 million voters.
Meanwhile, #Undi18, a group campaigning to lower the voting age, said if the Federal Constitution recognises 18-year-olds as mature enough for marriage, they should also be eligible to choose future leaders.
“The youths of these days differ in so many ways from the previous generation, all thanks to the abundance of information they receive.
“Some are mature way beyond their age. It’s high time that the older politicians stop underestimating what the youths can do,” said #Undi18 director Tharmelinggem Pillai.