Progress through a democratic process

In the countdown to the September 20 parliamentary elections, the government, civic society and all concerned parties surely should now be focussing on means to encourage people to practise their duty to vote.

It is heartening to know that Minister of Youth Rami Wreikat on Monday met with university deans to discuss means to maximise political participation of students, but to read on the same day the findings of a recent study by the Phenix Centre for Economic and Informatics Studies shows that more needs to be done on this front.

The findings come as a disappointment as they show that less than 40 per cent of eligible voters want to go to the polls on election day, with the rest not showing much interest in practising their democratic right and civic duty.

According to the findings of the Phenix study, of a sample of 1,200 citizens polled between August 6 and 11, only 38.9 per cent of eligible voters said they will go to vote for representatives in the Lower House; 42.1 per cent said they will not and 19 per cent were still undecided. 

Of the citizens surveyed, all adults representing a household, distributed across the country, about 30 per cent said they will not go to vote because they were disappointed by the performance of past parliamentarians; about 25 per cent said they doubted the integrity of elections; some 24 per cent said they did not support any of the running candidates; and 14 per cent were simply not interested.

That is probably a fair reflection of any society's involvement in political life and of the reality that shaped such thought. 

Less sensible, and probably inexistent in advanced democracies, is the finding that 32 per cent of the sample said they will vote to support a relative or a member of the same tribe.

That proves both that the thinking of many is "informed" by blood relations, not by the political course of the country, and, more seriously, that in the absence of institutionalised support, one tends to fall back on the only structure that might help: the family.

But if this may seem immature to some, it should also give food for thought to politicians who, most often, run for an equally narrow reason: personal gains.

The centre found that 27 per cent of those who will vote do that out of a sense of civic duty. These people constitute a sound base for any democratic process and should not be dismissed as idealists. They really care where the country is going.

It was disappointing to see that younger people are less willing to vote than the older generation. Could the youth have become sceptical so early in their life? If they did, will someone care to find out why and do something about it?

One positive finding was that 4 per cent more women intend to vote than men. It is obviously difficult to forego a right acquired with difficulty.

Scholars, political scientists and politicians should try to analyse the disappointing figures of the centre's poll. 

The fact that most citizens are more occupied with bread and butter issues in the dire economic situation prevailing in the country could be one explanation for the projected low voter turnout.

Regional wars and destruction could be another factor, but these should also act as a catalyst for citizens who should realize that only a democratic, inclusive and tolerant country can ensure that such wars and destruction are kept at bay and the country can flourish for the good of all.

Officials and other stakeholders still have ample time to get as many people as possible to vote.

And in the future, compulsory voting should be considered as an option. This is a formula applied in various countries, including Belgium, Australia, Brazil, Cyprus and Argentina. The argument for this formula is that voting is a civic duty, as paying taxes, compulsory education or military service when required.

Eligible voters should go to the polls and vote, and they have the option of casting a blank ballot if none of the voters or the lists appeal to their taste or liking.

But now as the issue is lack of appeal of the polls, there is still time to get more and more people to go to the ballot boxes on September 20.

This is the least that any citizen can do to his/her country, the duty to get the right people elected.