Medical Council (Election of Members) Regulations

Medical Registration Act

(Chapter 174, Section 4(3))

Medical Council (Election of Members)
Regulations

Rg 1

REVISED EDITION 1990

(25th March 1992)

[15th January 1954]

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Medical Council (Election of Members) Regulations.

Returning Officer

2. The President of the Medical Council, or any other person whom the Medical Council may from time to time appoint, shall be the Returning Officer for the purpose of these Regulations.

Vacancies

3. Whenever there is any vacancy on the Medical Council for registered medical practitioners to be elected under section 4(1)(d) of the Medical Registration Act, the Returning Officer shall within 30 days of any such vacancy occurring cause to be published a notice calling for the nomination to him of candidates to fill the vacancy, and shall cause nomination forms to be sent together with the notice to every registered medical practitioner resident in Singapore. The notice shall be, as nearly as may be, in Form A in the Schedule, or to the like effect.

Nomination paper

4. A nomination shall be made in Form B in the Schedule and forwarded to the Returning Officer.

Time of acceptance of nomination

5. No nominations shall be accepted by the Returning Officer unless received by him not later than 21 days after the date of the publication of the notice under regulation 3.

Vacancies filled by number of nominations

6. If the Returning Officer receives no more valid nominations than there are vacancies to be filled, he shall declare the candidates nominated to be elected and shall report accordingly to the Medical Council at its next meeting.

Vacancies exceeded by nominations

7. If the Returning Officer receives more valid nominations than there are vacancies to be filled, he shall send by post to every registered medical practitioner in Singapore the following documents:

(a)	a notice as nearly as may be in Form C in the Schedule, or to the like effect together with a ballot paper as prescribed in Form D in the Schedule which shall contain the names and academic qualifications of the candidates and shall state the date and the time at which the election will be closed;
(b)	an envelope (referred to in these Rules as Envelope A) as prescribed in Form E in the Schedule which shall contain a space for the signature of the registered medical practitioner and a space for the signature of the witness; and
(c)	an envelope (referred to in these Rules as Envelope B) as prescribed in Form F in the Schedule which shall contain the name of the Returning Officer and the address at which the ballot papers will be received by him.

Voting for candidates for vacancies only

8. A registered medical practitioner may vote for not more candidates than there are vacancies to be filled, by placing a mark on the ballot paper against the names of the candidates for whom he desires to vote. He should then enclose the ballot paper in Envelope A which he should sign in the presence of a witness, who should be either a registered medical practitioner, a Justice of the Peace, or an advocate and solicitor, and the witness should sign Envelope A accordingly. Envelope A should be enclosed in Envelope B which should be forwarded to the Returning Officer.

Notice

9.—(1) The Returning Officer shall give to each of the candidates at least 7 days’ notice of the date on which and the time at which the Envelopes B shall be opened.

(2) Any of the candidates or a single nominee of each candidate shall be entitled to be then present, when the Returning Officer in their presence shall cause the Envelopes B to be opened.

(3) The Returning Officer shall scrutinise the Envelopes A and shall reject any of them which in his opinion is not in accordance with these Regulations.

(4) Any candidate or any nominee of a candidate shall be empowered to represent to the Returning Officer that an Envelope A ought to be rejected.

(5) If the Returning Officer rejects any Envelope A under this regulation, it shall not be opened but shall be sealed in a separate parcel.

Procedure

10.—(1) Those Envelopes A which are not rejected shall be opened and the ballot papers extracted still folded and placed in a suitable receptacle.

(2) The ballot papers shall be drawn one at a time from the receptacle unfolded and scrutinised by the Returning Officer.

(3) The Returning Officer shall reject any ballot papers which are in his opinion not in accordance with these Regulations.

(4) Any candidate or any nominee of a candidate shall be empowered to represent to the Returning Officer that a ballot paper is not in accordance with these Regulations.

(5) Ballot papers rejected by the Returning Officer shall not be counted, but shall be sealed in a separate parcel.

Counting of votes

11.—(1) The Returning Officer shall cause the votes given to each candidate to be counted and shall declare to be elected by notice in such newspapers as he considers fit the candidate or candidates with the highest numbers of votes.

(2) In the event of a tie, the Returning Officer may give a casting vote or votes. In the event of a tie, if the Returning Officer is unwilling to give a casting vote, the successful candidate or candidates shall be determined by lot.

Sealing of papers

12. The opened Envelopes A and the ballot papers counted shall be sealed in separate parcels.

Retention of sealed parcels

13. Subject to any directions that the President of the Medical Council may give, such sealed parcels shall be retained by the Medical Council for one year and shall then be destroyed with the seal unbroken.

Appeals

14. Any question whether a person is a registered medical practitioner, or whether a candidate has been validly nominated or whether a vote may be counted shall be decided by the Returning Officer and any decision of his under these Regulations shall be final and conclusive:

Provided that any person aggrieved by the action or by a decision of the Returning Officer may, within 14 days of the publication of the results of an election, complain to the Medical Council, who may investigate the complaint and take such action (including declaring the election void in whole or in part) as it may think fit.

Complaints

15. Any complaint that a candidate or any person on his behalf has used corrupt methods or undue influence in order to secure the election of that candidate and any complaint that any person has used corrupt methods or undue influence in order to secure the rejection of a candidate shall be made to the Medical Council who may investigate the complaint and take such action (including declaring the election void in whole or in part) as it may think fit.

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