They sure don't make Politicians like they used to....

The recent death of the Merlimau State Assemblyman Datuk Mohamad Hidhir Abu Hassan means that our country is now faced with an imminent 15th by-election since the last General Election in March 2010.

I've done some research from various sources (mostly on THE STAR online) and tabulated the following:-

Date of by-election / Seat / Location / What happened to the Incumbent

• 26 August 2008 - Parliament - Permatang Pauh - Incumbent Resigned
• 17 January 2009 - Parliament - Kuala Terengganu - Incumbent Died while playing badminton (probably due to heart failure)
• 7 April 2009 - Parliament - Bukit Gantang - Incumbent Died of heart attack
• 7 April 2009 - State - Bukit Selambau - Incumbent Resigned
• 7 April 2009 - State - Batang Ai - Incumbent Died of stroke
• 31 May 2009 - State - Penanti - Incumbent Resigned
• 14 July 2009 - State - Manek Urai - Incumbent Died of heart attack
• 25 August 2009 - State - Permatang Pasir - Incumbent Died of heart ailment
• 11 October 2009 - State - Bagan Pinang - Incumbent Died from blood disorder
• 25 April 2010 - Parliament - Hulu Selangor - Incumbent Died of brain cancer
• 16 May 2010 - Parliament - Sibu - Incumbent Died of liver cancer
• 4 November 2010 - Parliament - Batu Sapi - Incumbent Died in a motorcycle accident
• 4 November 2010 - State - Galas - Incumbent Died of colon cancer
• 30 January 2011 - State - Tenang by-election, 2011 - Incumbent Died of blood infection and complications due to diabetes
• 6 March 2011 - State - Merlimau - Incumbent Died of heart attack

First and foremost, deepest condolences to their surviving family members and close friends.

Out of 15 of them, 3 resigned, 1 died in a motorcycle accident and the rest died of poor health while in office. Each by-election costs a great deal of taxpayers money. The police spent nearly RM40mil on the first five by-elections to maintain peace and security: RM2.8mil in Permatang Pauh, RM15.3mil in Kuala Terengganu, RM10.7mil (Bukit Gantang), RM6.4mil (Bukit Selambau) and RM4.6mil (Batang Ai). (Source : http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/1/21/nation/7844782&sec=nation).

Using the statistics above, if 5 by-elections cost RM40 million (Polis Di-Raja Malaysia only), then 15 of them would cost a total of RM120 million. Not including the other expenses, a large sum of which undoubtedly comes from the taxpayers' contribution.

Perhaps the voters too feel "short changed" in their "investment", having taken the time to come out and vote for their chosen representative, only to have them "expire" before time out. I only hope that, in their brief stint as elected representatives of the rakyat (people), they have managed to do some good and serve the public as best they could.

A friend of mine quipped on Facebook, "COME NEXT GENERAL ELECTION ALL CANDIDATE MUST GO THRU HEALTH SCREENING TEST". Heh, heh. Leon, I agree with you 100%!

Nominees for elections, in addition to fulfilling other requirements, should be made to undergo a full medical examination and certified with a clean bill of health before they are permitted to run for election. They do this medical screening when you go for a new job, and in some cases, before you can sign up for insurance, so why not install this requirement for our Assemblymen and Members of Parliament? This would save a lot of the taxpayers dollars, by reducing the possibility of a by-election (and its associated high costs). One should be unlikely to go from healthy to cancer / heart attack in such a short period, although I could imagine, the job would be quite stressful.

If you were nominated to run for office, but you feel yourself unsuitable, you should do the responsible thing and opt out, for the sake of your supporters. People who are in this condition should take the precious little time they have and spend it with their loved ones.

It does not matter if you are rich or poor, a mighty king or an unnamed beggar. Eventually, all of us have to go. What is important is that we do our best when we are alive, so that our good name and deeds may continue to live on in the hearts of our family and friends, long after we ourselves have left this plane of existence....

Well, having said that, I do hope that something will be done to ensure that our chosen leaders will live up to the task of taking our country to the next level.


UPDATE [20 Feb Jan 2011] : The Merlimau by-elections will be held on 6 March 2011.