KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysians should vote for a “positive change” this GE14 without fear of those in power, former Umno supreme council member Tan Sri Syed Hamid Syed Jaafar Albar said today.
In an open letter to Malaysians, Syed Hamid said that he was sure that many of them have already encountered their fair share of “gifts, flashy ad campaigns and fear-mongering tactics” ahead of the national polls.
But Syed Hamid — who was chairman of the Land Public Transport Commission until he was replaced last June by another Umno veteran Tan Sri Isa Samad — said he hoped Malaysians have had a chance to hear “voices of reason” amid such distractions.
“We as voters are not here to make the strong even stronger. Let us not fall into that trap.
“Come 9 May, let us all, my fellow Malaysians, vote with our conscience to make a positive change. Vote with your heart. Vote sincerely. Let good judgment prevail.
“Vote for people with integrity, honour, transparency, accountability and those who are hardworking and trustworthy, so that these qualities can be imbued in a government that they represent,” he said in the two-page letter.
Syed Hamid said that democracy is about the freedom to choose whoever that voters feel is able to translate their aspirations into actions, and not merely campaign promises, slogans and manifestos.
“While we should respect those in power, we should not fear them. Think carefully about the future and know that any decision you make on 9 May will not only affect the next five years, it will set a precedence for years to come,” he said, telling Malaysians to vote wisely.
Syed Hamid was formerly a member of Parliament from 1990 to 2013, and was minister for different ministries and also in the Prime Minister’s Department throughout 1990 to 2009.
Syed Hamid was involved in a high-profile lawsuit in his capacity then as home minister, where the Federal Court last July upheld the RM350,000 compensation award to incumbent Seputeh MP Teresa Kok in her court case against him and three others over her 2008 wrongful arrest and detention under the Internal Security Act, repealed in 2012.
Another high-profile case during Syed Hamid’s tenure was the Home Ministry’s 2007 ban on the publication of the word “Allah” in the Bahasa Malaysia section of Catholic weekly, Herald.
The ban kickstarted the Catholic Church’s long court fight to reverse the decision that finally ended unsuccessfully in January 2015.
– Malay Mail
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