Vote for the right, veto for the wrong

THE voting vibe is beginning to build up to a crescendo with the election goal post not likely to be shifted any more. December 29 it is, and no hanky panky, brother. With a stupendous act of turnaround of the century the magic wand has gone to the possession of those who were once booed and then herded and thrown into dungeons to rot forever. They have come out and are now laughing the last laugh. This is the beauty of politics.
Before going deep into the game of politics and the sideshow of voting, let us look at some wise words of some wise men on the subject. The first one by Oliver Wendell Holmes is a rhyme and it goes like this:
"The freeman, casting with unpurchased hand
The vote that shakes the turrets of the land."
Uncanny. It surely reminds us of things back home, doesn't it? Oliver Wendell Holmes was an American writer by passion and a physician by profession. His best-known work is: The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes. In this rhyme, written in the mid 19th century, he talks about "unpurchased" hand. So, when was voting clean and honest? But in the same breath he says, "the vote that shakes the turrets of the land," meaning the vote of an honest man can be powerful enough to rend asunder the bastion of evil power. Ah! Something positive, at last.
Next, we have this wonderful one liner from John F. Kennedy. Here it goes: "The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all."
One voter only! Look what we do collectively! We, a bunch of ignorant voters, troop down to the centre to send crooks to power. I hope voters of a particular constituency in Netrokona will now look back and contemplate the full meaning of these words. Did they do the right thing by voting the "spiky" to power? Please, Netrokona voters, do it for the sake of all of us. Do it for the sake of the nation, brothers. I am sure there are better candidates in your area.
But, as always, wisest of them all, the great Irish humorist George Bernard Shaw gives the most profound observation on the subject of election and voting. He says:
"Unless the people can choose their leaders and rulers, and can revoke their choice at intervals long enough to test their measures by results, the government will be a tyranny exercised in the interests of whatever classes or castes or mobs or cliques have this choice." No comment.
Well, the tide of voting will soon turn into hightide to sweep us all into an unknown future. This is making many conscious citizens think deep and take initiatives to create awareness amongst the people about the imperatives of casting votes for the right person, rejecting the wrong one. These people are taking time out of their busy schedules to organise roundtables or create innovative communication materials to impart the messages.
I have had the opportunity of attending a small congregation of young and old that was organised by FutureLeaders, a forum that talks about and works with young leaders. It was all about the expectations of the new generation from the political government that will come after the election. Some very negative vibes came from some young university students and executives about politics as a whole. For all the wrong things that happened in this country they blamed the politicians. But then again there were others who thought some politicians somewhere have done something good someday for the country.
In that roundtable, Professor Syed Munir Khasru of IBA department (DU) presented some interesting posters and slogans with the help of a projector (an image of one such poster cum slogan is printed with this article). Each slogan is about who to vote for, who not to vote for, how to vote, how to identify the right person to vote for, why we shouldn't vote for certain people, and so on.
The rhymes, the design, graphics and overall presentation gave the impression that the posters would be powerful tools for making the changes in the mindset of the voters, especially the first-time voters. Everyone present in the roundtable appreciated the endeavour and thanked the professor for his efforts. It is an innovative and effective communication material that he had assisted the films and publication department of the government in developing against many odds. These would be shown through various media all across the country.
You know something; our hope for some good candidates coming to parliament depends largely on the first time voters. Nearly 30 percent of the total voters are young, literate and conscious. They have registered for the first time this year. So, don't let us down, young brothers and sisters. You will know when to vote and when to veto.

Shahnoor Wahid is a Senior Assistant Editor of The Daily Star. He can be contacted at shahnoorwahid @yahoo.co.uk.