Vote Wisely

Make our votes count by voting wisely. This coming Saturday 7 May 2011, many Singaporeans will be heading to various polling stations to cast their votes. All parties have been aggressively campaigning for votes. Fliers, posters, banners, newsletters, rallies, social network media, etc. are commonly found in every part of Singapore. Each party has spelled out their manifestos clearly.

There is a slight change in this year polling system.  There will be a cooling period of one day before the polling day to let the voters calm down and decide wisely. As my area is designated as a Group Representative Constituency (GRC) ward, I shall cast my vote for the team of candidates which I think will serve my constituency well. Personally, I don’t like the GRC idea of voting. It’s like booking a package tour where you are ‘forced’ to visit places you don’t like.  Similarly, I’m ‘forced’ to vote in candidates whom I feel are unsuitable.  A friend had this quote for me, “Election is voting for the better devil to cause less harm to you.” Anyone disagrees?

I had heard a story that happened in one of the old condominiums in Singapore.  This condominium was self-managed by a team of council members for many years without engaging the service of managing agent to reduce costs. Somehow, a group of homemakers grew tired of the council members.  They formed their own team and decided to overthrow them.  They went round canvassing for proxy votes and soon took over the management of the condominium during the Annual General Meeting. Being homemakers and not experienced in managing the condominium, many things went wrong in that year they managed. The condominium became run down.  Many residents suffered from poor services - roof leakages that took months to resolve, low water pressure, dirty toilets, guards sleeping while on duty, frequent mosquito bites and rats infestation.  Subsequently, a new team was elected and they had a hard time repairing the damages done. The residents had learned their lesson to cast their vote wisely.

Fellow Singaporeans, please don’t play with your precious votes. Vote wisely to ensure our country continues to have peace, progress and prosperity.