KUALA LUMPUR: Independent Malaysian polls watchdogs on Wednesday disputed the government's insistence that weekend elections were free and fair, citing “serious flaws” in the electoral system.

A joint report by the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) and the Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) cited a range of problems including widespread concerns over the integrity of the electoral roll.

It added that while voting and handling of ballots generally proceeded smoothly, issues including faulty indelible ink, partisan use of government machinery and pro-government media bias left a blot on the election.

“Having conducted an independent and impartial observation of the elections, IDEAS and CPPS conclude that (the election) was only partially free and not fair,” its report said.

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has called for a sustained “fierce”campaign for electoral reform, alleging Sunday's elections were “stolen” by Prime Minister Najib Razak's government.

Najib, who was sworn in Monday after his Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition retained its 56-year hold on power, has dismissed the allegation.

But the watchdogs' report cited “serious flaws when assessing the complete freedom and the fairness” of the election.

They included a lack of transparency in campaign spending, questions over the Election Commission's supposed independence from Barisan, and inequities in the delineation of constituencies.

Barisan retained a firm majority in parliament despite winning less than half of the popular vote, a factor blamed on self-serving gerrymandering and redistricting by Barisan over the years.

The report also took Najib's campaign to task for provocative racial rhetoric, saying “the campaign was marred by tactics that nudged voters to vote (for Barisan) based on ethnic sentiments”.

The watchdogs also said their observers were barred from some polling centres and that the government refused to provide them financing, hampering their work.

The election was touted as the first in the country's history in which the opposition had a real chance of unseating the ruling coalition, which has held a tight grip on power since independence in 1957.