The opposition parties have been relentless in attacking the inefficient, incompetent, and undemocratic rule of the Barisan National, particularly Umno. They form the Barisan Alternatif to seek people's support to rule the country. But what have they done to instil confidence that they will be more efficient, competent and democratic?

I am no big fan of BN but I will continue to vote for BN because BA is simply not good enough.

The BA is without direction. PAS' policy of establishing a truly fundamental Muslim state based on hudud (Islamic penal code) laws is insensitive to the multi-religious society. DAP's failure to oppose with strength on this issue shows its incompetence when it was in the opposition front.

Keadilan never has any clear direction on how it wants the country to be run, it just follows the tide of PAS or DAP, whichever is convenient. PRM is too inefficient to even exist meaningfully.

They squabble for seats at general election or by-election and then campaign independently in each other's area of influence, without a common agenda. PAS tells the people to go against Umno because Umno is not Islamic enough while DAP talks to Chinese, telling them MCA is selling off their rights as citizens. Keadilan and PRM join PAS or DAP forums for convenience.

I was excited and felt extremely elated when the opposition parties decided to work together to form a united front to take on BN. I had hoped that the BA would provide a realistic alternative choice for the rakyat . I am now extremely disappointed.

The leaders of these opposition parties simply do not have the political will to stand up to the rakyat in one single voice with one single agenda. The marriage of convenience starts at the nomination centre and ends at the counting centre.

The BA today is not a good enough alternative to BN. For all the shortcomings of the BN government, it has provided a stable and peaceful environment for the country. The cooperation among the component parties in BN is vital in ensuring peace and harmony among the people of different races and religions.

I seriously doubt the component parties in BA can ever have the same level of cooperation as those in BN. If the parties within BA cannot work effectively together with a common agenda for the good of the people and the country, their claim of viable alternative government must be hollow.

They have, in fact, simply divide the people even more along racial and religious lines with their "divide and talk" approach.

Time is running out for BA. Umno in its latest general assembly was not afraid to discuss unpopular issues among the Malays. Would PAS dare to talk about working on equal basis in government with the non-Muslims in DAP in its forums?

Would PAS dare to talk about the sensitivities of the non-Muslims towards hudud and that the laws of the land should accommodate these non-Muslims? Would DAP leaders dare talk about supporting PAS' policy on hudud among the Chinese and Indians?

The cooperation in BN is a permanent one. But it is not the same for BA. The people of Malaysia want an alternative political force to provide check and balance. If BN continues to be incompetent and inefficient, I would not hesitate to vote for BA but I have to be convinced that the alternative is indeed a viable one, and that I am confident the alternative government is likely to be more efficient, competent and democratic.

At this moment, for all the shortcomings of BN government, it is still better than BA without a clear agenda. As far as I am concerned, the opposition is in disarray right now.