OCTOBER 28 — To me, the coming 15th General Election can serve as one of the effective mediums to rid of corruption.
How? By voting for the right candidates – one who is clean or seen to be relatively clean, people-friendly or seen to be relatively people-friendly, and most importantly, has no criminal records whatsoever in committing corruption, in particular.
Of course, this is no easy task to shoulder but as responsible voters, we must cast our every right to ensure that this loved nation of ours, after this general election, is steered by and left in good hands.
The urgency to transform this country into a moral-ethical entity which is free of corruption, among other major things which we must do, is just too overwhelming.
We must take it upon ourselves this time around to carry out this transformation in our own little, responsible way by voting out the wrong ones. So, don’t miss this splendid opportunity to stem corruption.
“...verily Allah will not change His favour that has been bestowed upon a people, unless the community change themselves” (Surah Al-Anfal 8:53)
Also with verse 11 of Surah Ar-Rad (chapter 13) which states that “...verily Allah will not change the condition of a people unless they change what is in themselves.”
Malaysia, as Perak Sultan, Sultan Nazrin Shah said recently, cannot be complacent or in denial about the existence of corruption, especially after dropping five rungs in the annual global corruption perception index. Malaysia fell from 67th to 62nd place in Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index.
It is high time for voters to make effort through their vote to get rid of this cancerous disease. We can’t afford to take it lightly or choose to be in denial in admitting the existence of corruption elephants in our country.
Each and every voter is responsible and obligated to be daring enough in acknowledging the ongoing reality of corruption that has reached critical and dangerous levels in our country.
This election, no doubt, serves as an “immediate treatment” where we, voters, can truly discharge our obligations responsibly and in full commitment.
When Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was prime minister, he went on a drive to curb corruption through the launch of the National Anti-Corruption Plan.
Equally significant is his pledge to uphold and respect the independence of the judiciary, which is fundamental to the integrity of the entire system of governance.
Their cases have brought home some stark realities but Muhyiddin’s principled refusal to "interfere" in the judicial process to "save" these individuals will go down in history as a courageous move, rare in the annals of Malaysian politics.
It is not only our right but our responsibility to elect the right set of leaders to administer the functioning of this country. And casting vote is the most efficient way whereby we can communicate our grievances about the system and determine that the growing political corruption and all forms of malpractices are put to an end. We must not fail to understand that to run this country, we need to elect relatively good leaders to minimise the level of corruption and malpractices in the system.
And, this we must do.
*This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
