The general election might be held as soon as May as the parliamentary select committee (PSC) on electoral reforms will only put forward its final proposal to parliament by April, said Election Commission chairperson Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof.

In a Berita Harian report today, he opined that the parliament may be dissolved in May, so the 13th general election can take place within 60 days after that, which is either in May or June.

“I don’t mean the prime minister cannot dissolve parliament as early as March, but I believe he will wait until all the PSC’s recommendations are implemented by the EC,” he was quoted as saying.

Should the general election be held in March, he said, those who register as voters in the first quarter of 2012 will not be able to vote because the EC needs a month to gazette the names into the electoral roll.

The coming polls are seen as one of the most fiercely contested in the nation’s history to determine whether Prime Minister Najib Abd Razak can regain popular support or the ambitious opposition will conquer Putrajaya.

Meanwhile, on a related issue, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang has rejected EC’s proposal to prohibit election candidate from mobilising supporters on nomination day.

He urged the EC to focus on the eight demands of the people for a better electoral process, rather than deliberating on other aspects.

“Rallies on nomination day have been practised in the country since before independence and it is part of the democratic process,” he told Sinar Harian today.