ON Nomination Day yesterday, 1,900 candidates stepped forward to offer themselves as candidates in the 13th General Election. Five hundred and seventy- nine will seek a seat in the Dewan Rakyat while 1,321 will be going for a seat in the respective state assemblies, not counting Sarawak.

The bottom line, however, is that in the most noble of pursuits, these candidates are offering themselves to serve the people.

The winners will be our representatives in the legislative chambers, of which a select number will form the executive branch of government.

Official campaigning begins today and ends at midnight on the eve of the May 5 polling day.

GE13 will count as one of the watershed elections in our nation’s history.

While the political tsunami of GE12 back in March 2008 is still fresh in people’s minds, the way forward is not exactly clear.

But the hope is that in a maturing democracy, all the protagonists, from whichever side of the political divide, are committed to play by the rules.

In any contest, the aim is to win. But victory at all costs may prove hollow if, in the process, the values and fundamentals most dear to us are compromised.

Every candidate must bear in mind that with power comes responsibility.

That the state of the nation hinges on one side winning, at the federal level, for example, 111 plus one of the 222 seats, is a clear indication that on the shoulders of so few rest the future of so many.

In the days ahead, candidates hitting the ceramah trail will have their final opportunity to push their message.

Many will be first-timers who have yet to come under the spotlight of the national media and this will be their baptism of fire as they come up close and personal to the people at the grassroots.

For too long, our country has been highly divisive politically, and the general election is the time when we remind ourselves that at every constituency, only the voters in that area can determine who among the two, or in some cases three or more, candidates on the ballot paper will be given that chance to serve.

The candidates must therefore be humble before the electorate and understand that they will be held accountable for what they say or promise now.

And the voters must do their part to hold those whom they send into the hallowed halls responsible and accountable.

In this last leg of campaigning, passions will run high.

Those who offer themselves as candidates can and should be passionate about the fight. But they owe it to themselves, and to the nation, to fight fair and square and to respect the people’s verdict once the election is over.

In this final dash to the finishing line, you will ask the people to vote you in so you can be of service to them, and to work to make the nation better.

That is the real journey ahead, whether one is elected an MP or a state assemblyman, come May 5.

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