KUCHING: Voters for the 12th Sarawak state election have been advised to go out and cast their ballots according to the times suggested by the Election Commission (EC).

EC secretary Datuk Ikmalrudin Ishak said it had, through the MySPR Semak application, stated the recommended voting time for each voter.

He said that if the voters could not come out to vote at the recommended times for whatever reason, they could still vote according to the times available from 7.30 am to 5 pm or the times stated at their respective polling centres.

"However, voters are advised not to cast their ballots at the last minute and to always abide by the all laws, regulations and special guidelines on COVID-19 prevention on polling day," he said in a statement today.

He also urged voters who already know their voting information to go directly to their designated voting channel and to check their information in advance before polling day through https://pengundi.spr.gov.my, MySPR Semak app or the EC Hotline at 03-8892 7018.

"When checking, voters are recommended to note down and store information regarding their polling centre, voting channel and number," said Ikmalrudin.

Voters are also reminded to bring their identity cards and voting information records and show them to the first polling clerk to facilitate the checking of their names as well as for the smooth running of the voting process, he said.

"Voters are also advised to keep their identity cards safe and not hand them over to anyone except the election officials at their respective polling stations," he said.

He said a total of 1,213,769 voters out of 1,252,014 registered voters are eligible to cast their ballots this Saturday (Dec 18) while 20,360 were early voters and 17,885 voted by post.

-- BERNAMA