More to democracy than elections

MARINA Mahathir’s comments in “Towards a more mature democracy” ( Sunday Star, June 24) are a sobering reminder that democracy is more than just about voting in elections.

To ensure we have a government of the people, for the people and by the people, Malaysians from all walks of life must strive to continuously uphold and practise the ideals of a democracy, particularly when these can be easily overlooked in today’s environment of strong political partisanship, which can result in a polarised nation.

In his final speech as president of the United States, Barack Obama stressed the warning that democracies are most vulnerable when their citizens forget that they are pursuing a common goal of strong nation-building, which requires a sense of unified purpose.

Hence, our stakeholders including the institutions of the executive, parliament and judiciary, must ensure that this sense of common purpose is not in short supply.

As Obama succinctly put it, “It falls to each of us to be those anxious, jealous guardians of our democracy”, we must strive to forge a united society where members strongly value tolerance, compassion and inclusiveness.

And for Malaysian democracy to thrive, a fair distribution of economic and political power across communities is a desirable and achievable goal.

SZE LOONG STEVE NGEOW Kajang