No more empty promises, it is time to deliver

CALL it what you want: dipstick survey, straw poll, research paper, man on the street poll, etc. Come the general election, we all know this is the time for pollsters to earn their keep.

Hence, the various findings in the media regarding voter trends, prime ministerial favourites and which party has the edge in the elections race.

I’m no pollster, and I certainly do not have access to a thousand respondents, but a tongue-in-cheek questionnaire among 10 of my close friends confirmed my earlier suspicions.

Nine out of 10 of them could not accurately identify either the various coalitions contesting GE15 or even each coalition’s prime minister candidate.

All 10 were also not able to identify every single component party that constitutes the four major coalitions contesting next week’s polls.

Albeit, this is a rudimentary poll, but are the results that surprising?

We have the biggest number of parties contesting this time around. And it gets even more confusing when you realise that there are no straight fights; each parliamentary seat will have three, four, five or even 10 candidates socking it out.

The numbers are mind-boggling. Some 945 candidates vying for the 222 seats available. And out of that number, 108 have entered the race as independent candidates.

Confusing yes, and one wonders just how the average voter is going to decipher all this when he or she heads to the polling booth come Nov 19?

To me, the sheer number of candidates contesting this GE is an indication that Malaysia has a vibrant and thriving democracy. But I personally feel that the Elections Commission (EC) should increase the deposit amount to contest a parliamentary seat from the current RM10,000 to RM30,000 or even higher.

It’s like that famous AirAsia tagline. Now everyone can be a candidate!

The rules state that any Malaysian may register themselves as a candidate by paying this amount (unless disqualified by the returning officer) but increasing the deposit would ensure that we only get genuine contenders rather than “vote spoilers”.

Take the Batu seat for an example. Who are the serious contenders among the 10 candidates? Is this making a mockery of the system? These non-serious contestants will end up confusing voters and ultimately befuddle the electorate.

Let’s get real. Many independent candidates will lose their deposits. It is inevitable. How many independent candidates in the last few GEs have managed to do a David vs Goliath and actually win a seat? I can think of only two or three names.

If it is one thing that politicians should take away from this GE, no matter the eventual outcome, it’s that the electorate has become increasingly demanding.

We, the voters, expect our “Yang Berhormats” to be “Yang Berkhidmats” and serve the rakyat.

A politician will make all kinds of election promises during their political campaign, but will they really deliver once elected?

GE14 showed us that politicians should not take voters for granted. If you do not perform in this day and age of trial by social media, you will be kicked out in the next election.

That is why the time has come for all our newly elected reps after GE15 to serve full-time as MPs in order to do justice to the country.

Our MPs earn a decent wage (of course much less than our neighbours down south) of about RM16,000 a month not including allowances and other subsistence. And this should enable them to give their best to their constituents.

A frequent complaint I hear is that MPs are not reachable whether in person or via the phone.

And no, using your political secretary to meet the rakyat is not the solution.

How many of our 222 MPs are full-time politicians? Not many, I’ll wager.

For many, Parliament is their side gig. They are either businessmen, professionals or have private practices. How on earth are they going to devote enough time to their constituents?

You cannot keep using the excuse that you are busy attending to your private practice or business. Our electorate deserves better because the rakyat should have access to all our MPs.

The pledge to declare assets undertaken by PKR politicians should become the norm. The EC should make it compulsory for every single candidate to do so.

Being transparent and open is not something we often associate with our politicians, but a pre-GE asset declaration should be the bare minimum that we expect from them. It does not matter if you have RM60mil to declare or you have only RM6,000 in cash or kind.

Let the people judge you, not based on your wealth, certainly not on your promises, but based on your ability to perform, deliver and serve the constituency and the country in the next five years.