4896

Malaysian voters should know
The Voters
Nov 10, 06 4:46pm

I think it is timely for us, as citizens of Malaysia, and as voters of Malaysia, to state our stand clearly, and to be more responsible in the direction and operation of our country.

Barisan Nasional, led by Umno, has been running this country for 50 years. And if we blame BN for any problem or questionable policy, ie, the NEP, Official Secrets Act, ISA, the deteriorating social order, the raising of petrol prices, hike in cost of living, corruption etc, we are not just stupid ourselves, but we are in fact pushing our responsibility away from us as we have contributed directly or indirectly to above examples.

BN did not come to power from a coup d’etat, not even once. All the general elections were won legally. All our prime ministers came to power legally, and all of them left the office legally. We did not have to push any of our prime ministers out of office. Our police and army are loyal to the government, no matter who is the prime minister. Look at Thailand, and you all know what I mean.

So, again, who is to blame for all the above questionable policies and problems? It’s you, me, us - the voters. The BN government did not stop any Malaysian whether Chinese, Indian, Malay, Kadazan, Dusuns, etc, from becoming voters after they reached 21 years of age. As such, if the government we voted in is corrupt, inefficient, or lousy, who is to blame?

Nothing is ever perfect in this world. But by working together and exercising our voting rights, we can all make a difference. Although each one of us only has one vote, the energy in all the votes added up becomes a nuclear force. All votes count. And all of us are responsible for voting in a new government every five years. If you do not like this government, we can vote together to get a new government.

If you do not like BN, you could vote for other parties. But, please remember, after we vote in the next government in 2008/2009, we must observe their performance for five years and judge whether they should be returned in 2013/2014.

Be responsible and think carefully before you cast your next vote. Each one of us can easily influence five to 10 voters so collaboratively, you can make or break a government.

In a modern and democratic society, the voters are more educated and we should first understand the functions of a government. We vote for a government to lessen our daily burdens, not a government which puts more burdens on our shoulders. We vote for a government to give us an easy life, not for a government which creates bureaucratic rules to make our life miserable.

We vote for a government to take care of our personal security, not a government which tells us to take care of ourselves.

We vote for a government to enrich our citizens, not a government which enriches its own family members first.

We vote for a government to lead by example, not for a government which practices double standards or has no standards at all.

In short, we vote for a government to serve the people, not for one to be served by the people.