YOUR CHOICE: Is this fish fresh? Caveat emptor.
DON’T complain if you are not satisfied with what you have bought. It’s not the fault of the seller; blame it on your own poor judgement.
So it is said about the manifestos that the various political parties and independent candidates have been dishing out to voters in this election. Just like a menu that you get in a restaurant, there is a choice of food – either it’s the day’s special, a new dish, or else the old favourite. Both are not cholesterol free – it’s either good cholesterol or a bad one.
Then a few more – Tom yam? Sweet and sour fish? Cuttlefish? … No. No. Look at the greens – Sabah veggie or midin or kailan. Skip the red meat warns the doctor. Finally, raise your hand to the nearest waitress, snap your fingers and she will run to take the order. Tell her to bring up the first course soon because you are in a hurry to take your friend to the airport when in fact you are as hungry as a horse. His flight would not depart until almost midnight.
I had wanted to impress a client by inviting him to a local restaurant and without asking how much pek chio (white pomfret) would cost, I recommended it as the main dish for the evening. I’d not granted him the freedom of choice, lest he would ask for empurau, which would be outside my budget for the month. At the end of the meal, the damage was a whooping RM84 for the blooming fish alone. My mistake – as lawyers say: caveat emptor!
Like good eaters in the restaurant, at the polling booth, be discerning voters as well. You are given only one vote to cast every five years unless there is a by-election before the next.
Declarations of intent
The manifestos are in fact political platforms or action plans that the political parties and independents contesting in the election want to implement if and when they come to power. They include promises – promises without end. Some people call them a contract between the voters and the candidates but that’s not strictly correct because the terms are not binding on the parties – unless one considers the BR1M payment as a consideration – a vote for RM500. Is this an, ahem, inducement, disguised as an ex-gratia payment? If a known BR1M recipient does not vote for you, can you take him or her to court for breach of contract? At best, the promiser is honour-bound to perform his part of the bargain but like many non-binding agreements they can be broken, and often are, with impunity.
Some of the manifestos are to be read together with the statistics accompanying them. Be wary of statistics, though. The late Professor Holmes of Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, once said, “Statistics are like a bikini. What it reveals is important, what it conceals is vital.”
On promises, one writer states “Promises are like a pie crust made to be broken.” Another adds, “He promises mountains and delivers molehills.”
Proof of the pudding
Like pudding proven in the eating, so it goes with political promises – in their fulfilment. Like pudding eaten at the end of a meal, some of the promises are being fulfilled just before the elections.
My pick
If you ask me what would I pick from the menu for Sunday, I’d say security – national food security, personal and family security, job security, health security, religious security, among the most important.
Next is equity – a fair deal for Sarawak in terms of development funds (the proposal to raise the oil royalty to 20 per cent from the present 5 per cent has my support); a fair deal for the various ethnic groups in terms of intakes into the civil service and promotions (state and federal), and in the armed and police forces; a fair deal in commerce and industry for all businessmen and women.
Other important issues for discussion during this campaign will be kept under wraps for now – to be announced to friends later.
By now many people have made up their minds whom to vote for; the floaters are waiting for a wind direction and yet others are sitting on the fence. These shouldn’t stay there long until their bums are sore. Come down to earth seven days from today.
Those who have committed to a certain party or group will vote for that party or group no matter what carrot you dangle before him or her.
As one Iban proverb says, “Upah tajau lama pen, iya sigi enda ngundi sanu” (You may promise him an expensive antique jar, yet he will not vote for so and so).
People have the right to change or retain their representatives in parliament.
For them it is better to work with the devil they know than the devil they don’t know. Yet others may make a break from the past. Maybe familiarity breeds contempt.
I have made up my mind to vote and for the candidate of my choice come next Sunday. I cannot wait to dip my left forefinger into that bottle of ink. For the voters that ink will would remain indelibly in their minds. Thanks to Bersih.
Voters like diners, beware.
That’s food for thought for today.