You may allege that it is money politics to buy votes, ACA should come in, but according to Khir Toyo, the RM36 million development projects for Ijok is what the state government has planned “for quite some time” and that he merely chooses the timing of Ijok state by-election on April 28 to commence them. It makes the voters easier to remember to whom they should be grateful. It maximises BN chances to win in the by-election.

I think it is stretching too far to say this kind of “money politics” is corruption for ACA investigate. There is no bribing of public official here. What we have is a public official bribing the voters in Ijok .

Is it wrong for Khir to use government and machinery resources for these ends?

According to report on page 2 of The Sun April 19, which may be read in this link here http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=17650 :

· Malaysians for Free and Fair Elections (Mafrel), chairman Abdul Malek Hussin opined that It might be morally wrong but according to Malaysian laws, Barisan Nasional ministers could not be prohibited from using government machinery and public resources during an election campaign.

· “Former Universiti Malaya law faculty dean Datuk Dr Sothi Rachagan said the law, as it stands, cannot prevent ministers from performing their official functions during campaigning in the constituencies where elections are being held. Sothi, who authored Law and the Electoral Process in Malaysia, noted a previous court judgment that a minister’s promises did not amount to bribing voters because they fell under the broad definition of the minister’s duty in office. People who benefit from it (this loophole) will not want to change it. No one is going to vote themselves out,” he said when asked if the laws needed amendment Instead, Sothi suggested the long-term process of public education.” Currently, we put too much emphasis on a minister’s promises. That in itself is not a deciding factor for many voters,” he said, adding that many considered social issues and not all were blinded by development promises.

The broad judgment is, as encapsulated in The Sun report’s caption: “It’s morally wrong but not illegal”

Now you may wish to ponder what Democracy, that is aspired for all over the world but seldom achieved, truly is.

Democracy (based on one man one vote) is a system where the people get the kind of government they deserve, according to 3rd American president of USA, Thomas Jefferson quoting French lawyer, diplomat, writer, and philosopher Joseph de Maistre in the period immediately following the French Revolution.

If the majority people don’t care a damn about higher values of integrity and fair play, if they care only about parochial issues of race and religion, and whether they are going to benefit from new schools, roads, street lighting as a form of ‘bribery’ from political candidates in exchange for votes in Ijok by election, then what can be done?

If notwithstanding abuses, the voters still behave like Machap’s majority – happy after 50 years of independence to receive “ang pow” from BN candidates in exchange for support – what does this suggest? This only means that they “connive” in money politics, turn a blind eye to the widespread looting of the nations’ wealth by their leaders for so long as they receive some crumbs from them during by-election or general election.

If the mainstream and majority do not feel defensive of our Federal Constitution or feel outraged to protest publicly about Revathi Masoosai/Siti Fatimah’s 100-day detention for Islamic rehabilitation extended by the Malacca Syariah Court for another 80 days because they accept that we’re an Islamic state, what is there to say?

Isn’t this, too, a democratic expression of will of the people voting in a government of the people by the people for the people, where the expression ‘people’ necessarily means the majority of voters? Who could argue against Democracy albeit ala Malaysian kind?

Now we should perhaps be thankful that we’re not in some countries take Iraq and Afghanistan. American weapons of war may defeat their earlier rulers but can they bring democracy or peace to these countries? Hopes for democracy in Iraq are a fantasy as one hears of suicide bombings, sectoral violence and killings and terrorists resurgence, daily in the case of Iraq. Compare the anarchy now, after introduction of supposedly representative government to the time Iraq was under the tyrannical rule of a cruel, corrupt dictator with a pair of sadistic sons, and arguably at least in those days most people, except known dissidents against the government, could go around their daily business without fear of being bombed and shot. Whatever Bush might say otherwise, it almost as if Iraqis are better off with Saddam Hussein.

There are only three things a higher inspired minority can do about the situation, when outvoted by the majority in these circumstances.

One, is that the minority could try educating the masses about good governance, evil of corruption, corrupt nature of their elected representatives and shortsightedness of government policies – in public forums, blogs or other avenues.

If notweithstanding after 50 years one sees only two steps forward but five steps backward what does one do?

The second option is to be fatalistic, turn a blind eye, and join in to reap the spoils along with the corrupt politicians and their cronies in their mud-raking search for profits at the expense of the very people who keep voting them back into power.

Or the third option, part company from the majority whose mentality you are not in sync and shift out by migrating.

Of course this leaves behind a yet smaller pool of right thinking people behind whose diminishing numbers in terms of voting strength againsty the majority will make their voice even less heard, their right ridden roughshod over that make them also think of migrating, perpetuating in that process the vicious cycle started.

Who dio you blame – do you blame the system ‘Democracy’?