If we don’t vote, we are ignoring history and giving away the future.
– Anon
We are all waiting for the announcement of the dissolution of the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) and the nomination and polling dates of the Sarawak 12th state election.
The state government may announce the dissolution this week after the King has revoked the Emergency Order. Talk is rife that Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) has already planned to go ahead with the election by the end of November.
Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg recently gave his clearest indication that election was just around the corner when he used a soccer analogy to explain the position of the state government, saying his government was living on borrowed time after the DUN’s five-year time expired on June 6.
“We have to understand we are now in ‘injury time’ … If we were to continue to be the state government the people will ask why I still want to be chief minister when I no longer have the power … don’t have the mandate.
For us, our DUN has expired. We are now just waiting for the ‘penalty kick’,” he said.
Yes, the chief minister is right. The democratic process must be upheld and the people must be allowed to elect a government of their choice.
Some people are accusing the government of putting the people’s health at risk by deciding to hold the election this year; the naysayers are campaigning for the polls to be held next year.
The risks may have been minimised because as of Oct 23, 75.5 percent of Sarawak’s adult population have at least had their first dose while 72.6 percent are fully vaccinated. Now the state is going ahead with the booster shots.
I understand the Election Commission (EC) has set strict standard operating procedures (SOPs) in place. My only hope is that the EC has considered staggered voting — two days at least — in constituencies where there are high concentrations of voters like Padungan, Pending, Batu Lintang, Kota Sentosa, Batu Kawah, Bengoh, Bukit Assek and Pelawan.
In these constituencies, elderly voters and those with comorbidities, including those who have yet to be vaccinated, can vote on the first day and the rest on the second day.
With these strict measures, I am confident there will not be a surge in Covid-19 cases. Remember, South Korea, Singapore and New Zealand managed to go ahead with their elections and did not face any major health problems.
If they did it successfully, we too can hold our polls without any major problems.
A lot of my friends and relatives, especially the elderly ones and those with comorbidities, have already made up their minds not to come out and vote.
Well, that’s their right. No one can force them. It’s their loss for not exercising the right to vote. It only happens once every five years and they might not live long enough to vote in the next election.
My only request is for them to shut up and don’t comment if whoever is elected.
Now, I would like to touch on the incumbents and aspiring candidates for the election. Let’s choose wisely.
Here are some of the things I want from my rep:
• My assemblyperson must be honest. A politician is only as good as his word. So if he honours his commitments, I often respond in kind at the ballot box.
• He must put others first as it shows that he truly cares about the value of service over self. This is one of the best leadership qualities of a representative, given how he got to his position in the first place; it’s the voters who elected him.
• He must be someone who actively listens to us. Whether it’s responding to emails and phone calls or taking the time to reach out to us, he must be constantly attuned to his constituents. Well he may not be able to listen to everyone at once or please everyone — but putting in the effort is important.
• He should not be a ‘frog’. He needs to stick to his party till the next polls and not be influenced by unscrupulous people to abandon his party.
• My representative must walk the talk. If he doesn’t practise what he preaches, then he is not fit to be an assemblyman. If he says that he is going to do something, he must follow through. But I am reasonable; if he can’t fulfil his promises, he should take the trouble to explain why and take action to mitigate the consequences.
• He should not abuse his power.
• My representative must not wait for people to approach him; instead he should take the trouble to reach out to them. If the mountain will not come to Muhammad, then Muhammad will have to go to the mountain.
These are the few things I would want from my state assemblyman. Most politicians will be all ears before the election, but once elected you can hardly hear from them.
Their phones will be switched off and it could be months before you can see them. These are the representatives who need to be dumped in the trash bin.
