LETTER | Was the campaign and election conducted in a pristine and honest fashion? Was it conducted in an transparent manner or clouded by complacency and arrogance?

The redrawing of the electoral boundaries and a crackdown on fake news despite objections seem to suggest there exist glaring insecurity and weakness. Attributing to the insecurity and weakness is the 1MDB corruption scandal, rising cost of living, the imposition of GST, etc., which effectively has caused the popularity of caretaker prime minister Najib Abdul Razak to plummet.

While there is plenty of resentment with the current administration, on implementation and policies, will the people punish BN? Can Pakatan Harapan turn the election campaign effectively into parliamentary seats? Or will Harapan once again succeed in eradicating the majority for BN in the Dewan Rakyat?

Harapan is popular among urban voters and is that enough to swing voters to deliver a parliamentary majority? Or has Harapan build a broad enough coalition of the electorate to deliver seats?

Whilst Harapan have much to celebrate in this election, but it must do more to appeal to non-urban communities where BN is performing relatively well.

Meanwhile, Dr Mahathir Mohammad, the firebrand of Harapan, once written off by most opposition members, managed to mobilise a huge coalition of voters and didn’t expect his very peculiar strategy to work so well. Actually many are gobsmacked. Having said that, much remain unclear about GE14, both its causes and consequences.

In fact, GE14 has been very complex. The largest political party is currently fighting to keep continued control of the government but the voters are more inclined to deliver a decisive blow for BN and the stakes are indeed very high which may result in a hung Parliament.

This would mean BN might then have to form a coalition government. In wanting to form a coalition government BN may negotiate with PKR, Amanah and Bersatu but the other alternative – DAP may be regarded intolerable and this may not work out well, and they may get pushed around and consequently lose their ardent and core supporters. Or in the alternative BN may proceed to form a minority government.

In essence, poor election results may not be favourable hence it is necessary to win by a massive margin and proceed to form a strong and stable government.

This is in the interest of Malaysia and Malaysians, and such strong and stable government must engage the younger generation which must be a constant feature and all policies formulated must be more flexible as society becomes more diverse.

Come May 9, as a nation we will discover what this election means for Najib and Mahathir and the ordinary peoples whose lives hang in the balance when politicians make decisions. Remember, our objective as voters should be to build a more competitive political system. Vote wisely.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.