Speculation is rife on which existing state and parliamentary constituency will be affected, and how many new ones created. The commission, however, maintains that no decisions have been made yet.

Last week, an English daily quoted an UMNO source as saying that Johor expects 18 more state and nine parliamentary seats from this redelineation exercise. The report also said new constituencies are likely to be carved out of the parliamentary constituencies of Tebrau, Pontian, Kota Tinggi, Batu Pahat, Sri Gadin and Muar.

But commission secretary Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar says nothing has been decided yet.

"The officers are still in the midst of studying the areas, collecting data on the population size, the number of voters, new housing estates and the infrastructure there.

"These demographic details are vital as they indicate whether there is an increase in population and number of voters, and whether it will be convenient for the people to go to the polls. Even details like if there are schools in the area are important as these are used as polling stations."

Wan Ahmad says recent speculation of specific new constituencies is based on hearsay. He also thinks such guessing is misleading and could interfere with the commission's work.

"It is difficult for officers to do their job when people assume that the officers have already completed their task. What has been discussed by the officers in the different states is probably the information they have collected. They could be making a projection based on the data but were misunderstood and taken to have meant the areas they mentioned would definitely be redelineated."

Despite this clarification, it will be difficult for the commission to stave off speculation. Constituency redelipeation has long been a contentious issue in Malaysia, where the electoral system requires winners to poll a simple majority in a single-member territorial constituency. "In such a system, the manner in which constituencies are delimited and periodically altered is crucial.This is because the translation of votes into seats depends upon the location of constituency boundaries as they are superimposed upon the geographical pattern of party voters," says Datuk S. Sothi Rachagan in his book Law and the Electoral Process in Malaysia, published in 1993.

For a multi-ethnic country like Malaysia where communal politics is practised, there tends to be a perceivable voting pattern among the different races. In the peninsula, the majority of the Malays would support UMNO and PAS, the Chinese would vote for the MCA, Gerakan and DAP, and the Indians for the MIC. Similar racebased support is found in East Malaysia. The way constituencies are delineated can reflect this general pattern.

Since the general election in 1959, there have been volatile debates over the number of seats allocated and how constituencies were delimited. A se-ries of amendments to the Federal Constitution from 1962 to 1984 set the guidelines for redelineation exercises but also provided exceptions in special cases.

The 13th Schedule of the Constitution lists out all the principles the commission refers to as guidelines in its deliminitation exercises, says Wan Ahmad.

The commission is expected to take into account the infrastructure of an area to ensure it is convenient for voters to go to the polls. It will also have to consider if administrative facilities are available for registration and polling machines. The number of voters in each constituency in a state should be about equal, although not necessarily so.

Poorer rural areas for example are exempted from this requirement and given weightage.

It has been argued that their lack of infrastructure and the economic standing of the local community mean that these areas are in greater need of representation in the state and federal governments, even if they do not meet the average electorate size.

Wan Ahmad says the actual redelineation will only begin in March next year. "It's a lengthy process.That's why the commission has up to two years to conduct the exercise. I cannot say if it will be fast or slow, or in time for the next, general election.Right now, the commission's main concern is the ongoing voter registration exercise."

The Constitution states that there should be a minimum of eight years between each redelineation exercise the commission is required to complete the process within two years.

The last redelineation in 1992 resulted in 12 new constituencies. There were 104 parliamentary seats in the 1959 and 1964 general elections, and 144 in 1969. Further redelineations led to 154 seats in the 1974, 1978 and 1982 general elections, 177 in 1986 and 1990, 180 in 1995 and 193 in 1999.

Wan Ahmad said voters'demands and needs have also changed over time. Any redelineation will have to consider how new boundaries can affect representatives' workload and efficiency.

"If an area needs to be broken up and a new seat created, we will recommend so to the govermnent.

"The recommendations will have to go to the government, that is the prime minister. The commission does not have a representative in parliament and so the Prime Minister's Department will table the recommendations to the House.

"Approval from half the House is required before recommendations are carried out."

Professor R Ramasamy, a political science lecturer at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, says: "A population increase would mean a need for more representatives in parliament and state assemblies. A redelineation exercise can be conducted to update and improve the electoral system to make it more efficient and responsive in meeting the people's needs.

"But the population criterion is not consistently applied in all constituencies. Some seats have a smaller electorate than others. The commission must come up with the basis for each territorial revision because Malaysian citizens have the right to know how the redelineation is conducted."

Wan Ahmad maintains there are provisions in the constitution that provide for democratic practice, "If there are questions from local authorities or a group of at least 100 people, the commission has to conduct an enquiry and hold a public hearing".