Turn up in full force and use power of the vote

ON the eve of polling day for the 14th General Election, we the voters are faced with a major dilemma.

Having had a reasonably and relatively peaceful, stable and successful country since independence, we now face the dilemma of voting for either continuity or change in government!

How then do we try to resolve it? Firstly, since there are little real ideological differences in the elec- toral manifestos of the major political parties, we could fully utilise the power of the people’s vote on the careful choice of the candidate offered to us. We should choose only the honest, able, service-oriented and dedicated candidates with a proven track record.

Secondly, we should reject outright those candidates who are known to be extremists, deviationists, racists and religious bigots who have run down other religions in our precious multicultural society.

Thirdly, all those candidates who have said or done anything to erode national unity should be rejected at the polls without hesitation. We should vote only for the candidates who aspire to make Malaysia great, united and moderate, progressive and prosperous and, most importantly, united.

If we follow some of these principles and arguments, and of course your very own, we the vot- ers will overcome the doubts and fears, and the dilemmas we face as we prepare to vote tomorrow.

But to choose the right leaders, we have to turn up in full force and vote wisely. We all hope that we will have a clean, free and fair election that will give us pride and maruah (dignity). Jom undi!

TAN SRI RAMON NAVARATNAM Asli Chairman of the Centre for Public Policy Studies