After reading Lone's letter ' I'm voting the BN ', it is also important to see the other side of the coin. I'm not voting the BN. Here's why.

Corruption

If the prime minister means what he said about wiping out corruption at all levels of government, he should have immediately made the ACA accountable to Parliament instead of to him.

Our former prime minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad once said during the trial of the former chief minister of Melaka, "Politicians must be seen to be whiter than white". But are they? Corruption has become rampant. Without further ado, our prime minister should purge all party members who have even the slightest trace of misdeeds and have them investigated. Our de facto law minister has said that 18 names are currently under investigation. Who are these 18 persons and have they been selected to stand for the elections?

On several occasions, the government has been urged to follow the example of the ICAC (Independent Commission Against Corruption) of Hong Kong. Then governor, Murry MacLehose, said in the early 1970s: "... the situation calls for an organisation, led by men of high rank and status, which can devote its whole time to the eradication of this evil... Clearly the public would have more confidence in a unit that is entirely independent, and separate from any department of the government, including the police." It was then that the winds of change began to blow as people saw the Hong Kong government setting the stage to fight corruption.

Work with me

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the people working with you are in jail, i.e. the whistleblowers. Rather than sending them to jail, would it not be right for the authorities to treat this as invaluable feedback to improve the system? A person like Irene Fernandez is doing the government a favour by letting them know what had gone wrong with the system. I believe a note of thanks and apology to the whistleblowers would be in order followed by unconditional release.

It's a sin to be smart

Children with outstanding results in their Form 6 continued to be denied places in our local universities. Non-Malay parents who are poor have no choice but to stop their children's education and have them joined the workforce. Those lucky ones, whose parents are better off financially are leaving for overseas studies, draining not only our foreign exchange but creating a brain drain as well, especially at this time of our nation's growth.

It's a crime to be successful

Why is it when things go bad for our Malay friends, the Chinese are being used as the bogeymen to shake up the Malay community? It has always been a habit of the former PM to say things out of context, e.g. a Chinese can become a prime minister or the Malays must think like the Chinese. Is this really necessary? I felt very apprehensive every time I hear our leaders making such statement comparing one race against another.

Integrity

MCA, the party which is supposed to represent the Chinese community have been one big let down after another. What has happened to the money placed under the various trust funds? To date we have no answers. Where was MCA when SRJ (C) Damansara was facing a crisis of being shut down? Surprisingly, the one person who least expected to visit the school was none other than the late Fadzil Noor (president of PAS). I sure would love to see the likes of the two MCA representatives of Petaling Jaya (Utara and Selatan) fighting for a cause on behalf of the parents.

Education

The standard of our education system has declined to such an extent that our universities, which were once held in high esteem, are nothing more than over expanded colleges or high schools.

Now they have decided to bring English back into the system by having Maths and Science taught using this language. Is it not a case of too little too late? While we are now trying to get a foot hold on the English language, America is already preparing itself for the next language wave - Mandarin. The Chinese are simply setting up English tuition centres everywhere..

Many a time, our authorities have claimed that our education is the best. If so, why has it been ranked poorly in the Asiaweek magazine poll year after year? We used to be in the top 10. Today we are in 60 ^th or 70 ^th place. Moreover, why are our leaders sending their kids overseas to study? Doesn't this reflect the lack of confidence in our system?

Religious freedom

Oh yes, we do enjoy religious freedom but then why has the Catholic church in Shah Alam been barred from building despite approval given by the state government? Even a party like PAS allowed a Buddhist temple to be built beside a mosque in Kota Bharu. And why are schools no longer allowed to conduct religious classes when Muslim students are allowed to do so?

Public funds

As a non-bumiputera, I do not enjoy perks from the government. I work hard, earn a decent salary and then pay my taxes. But what irks me most is that my hard-earned money has gone to the building of the PM residence in Putrajaya. The question is - is it really necessary to live in such a palace-like abode? Even our Yang di-Pertuan Agong's palace looks pale in comparison. If our new PM wants our respect, move out from Putrajaya and return to Sri Perdana. Show the people you are the people's prime minister by spending taxpayers' monies wisely.

Short changed

We have been ripped off so many times that I have lost count. Here are some that come to mind:

Rip off #1:

As a resident in Cheras, I knew right from the beginning the toll collection at Taman Midah was a ruse to help someone to make money. After collecting RM143 million from the Cheras residents, the traffic jam instead of getting better has gone from bad to worse. As far back as 1990, we already foresaw that there was no way the traffic problem could be solved by just improving a short stretch of the road. Can we hope to get a refund from Metramac?

Rip off #2:

I am convinced that the National Service scheme will end up in the graveyard just like the Rukun Tetangga and Rakan Muda programmes. If 11 years of education cannot bring students together, what hope that they will be united during a few months in camp? If the government truly believes in a united Malaysian society, the first step is to disband all racial parties.

Moreover, NS activities appear to resemble the activities carried out by the Scout movement. Wouldn't it be cheaper than to make it mandatory for all students to join uniform movements in school rather than spending such a huge sum of money on this programme?

Rip off #3:

If MCA and Gerakan are supposed to safeguard the interests of the non-Malays, then they have failed. When I saw Lim Keng Yaik applauding Mahathir's announcement that Malaysia was an Islamic state, it further reinforced my belief. MCA, Gerakan and the other component parties must come clean with the rakyat . Just a simple 'yes' or 'no' - are we a secular state as enshrined in the constitution?

Rip off #4:

The Suqiu crisis is the mother of all rip-offs. Realising that the support from the Malay community will take a sharp dip in the 1999 election, the cabinet agreed to the 14 points raised by Suqiu so as not to lose the Chinese votes as well. One year later, the former PM reneged on the undertaking and crucified honourable men on an auspicious day like the Merdeka Day by linking them to the likes of terrorists, al-Ma'unah, etc. Where were the Chinese-based parties, in particular the MCA, at this moment of need? It is this defined moment that I realise our leaders just simply do not have the moral fibre to lead the nation.

Calibre of BN members

1) Has MCA been infiltrated by triad members? Ong Ka Ting was even photographed shaking hands with an alleged gang leader who is also a member of the party.

2) Umno Youth wanted to burn down the Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall and Puteri Umno proposed the burning of a PAS office. It is shocking - we have in BN arsonists!

I am not a supporter of any political party but if there is a straight fight between BN and PAS, my vote will go to PAS.