Commentary

The true value of a vote

WHAT IS IT about the people we choose to represent us that makes them ignore us once they get our votes?

It never ceases to amaze how many who 'volunteer' to represent the people do everything but represent the people once they are elected. Time and time again, the people's representative is never seen once his seat is secured and will only turn up again once an election looms. Only then are they once more willing to represent and they come bearing gifts and empty promises which somehow manage to quell the anger, frustration and resentment that have been smouldering for ever so long.

One way to ensure that such behaviour ends is to initiate mid-term elections wherein the electorate can, if they so desire, remove an under-performing representative and replace him with someone else.

Another way is to initiate something in the form of a recall vote where if a political representative is not fulfilling his representational obligations, he can be recalled or fired by the people whose votes put him/her there in the first place.

There may be other ways in which such delinquent behaviour can be stamped out of our system and in so doing allow the people to get true value for the votes they cast every five years.