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Malaysian Election Commission Signs Up Workers

>From The AOL-MyNews
26th July  1999

Malaysian Election Commission Signs Up Workers
Bloomberg News

Kuala Lumpur, July 26 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysia's Election Commission last week started signing up government workers as temporary staff to help conduct the country's elections, a sign polls may be called by November.

The Election Commission, which conducts the elections, sent out forms asking school teachers to help run polling centers, a state employee said. The commission's spokesman couldn't be reached for comment.

The commission usually uses schools and community halls as polling centers, fueling speculation it may hold the elections during school holidays in September or in November.

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad must hold elections before his government's five-year term expires in April 2000. News of the election could boost stocks on optimism about stepped up government spending on roads, schools and other infrastructure.

``Any date is a good date now,'' said Mohd. Nasir Ali, chief executive at brokerage house Kuala Lumpur City Securities Sdn. ``The economies in the (Southeast Asian) region have started expanding again; so is Malaysia's.''

Mahathir, who has been prime minister since 1981, has pushed interest rates lower and prodded banks to make loans more easily available to boost the economy. The Malaysian economy shrank 6.7 percent last year, after expanding at an average of 8 percent a year in the decade through 1997.

The economy is also expected to beat the government's forecast of a 1 percent expansion this year. Last year, when jailed Anwar Ibrahim was finance minister, the government had to lower its forecasts half a dozen times.

Mahathir repeatedly pointed to the surge in stock prices and the increase in car sales as signs his government's measures to revive the economy has worked.

The benchmark stock Composite Index has doubled in the past 12 months, making it the world's third-best performing index. Vehicle sales in Malaysia rose to a 17-month high in April as they expect job cuts to slow and economic activities to pick up.

While official election campaigning hasn't started, Mahathir is visiting various states and holding large gatherings.

Last week, he visited the eastern state of Kelantan, one of the poorest and the only one of the country's 13 states controlled by an opposition party. He promised to build a university in the state and also explore for oil in the shores off Kelantan.

Schools break for a week beginning Sept. 6, and for seven weeks beginning Nov. 20. Malaysia's official election campaign typically lasts less than a month.

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