14 GE14 : Election Rush

Although more than a month has passed since Malaysia's 14th General election, the day is still fresh in my mind. Hubs and I woke up early and was at the polling centre by 7.30am. There were tents along the road with people passing out tissue to voters.

It was a cheerful occasion. We made top 10 in the queue. I walked into the classroom and everyone was so smiley. Yup, ours was in a school. "Good morning!" we greeted one another. I stood back as my name and IC was read. My fingers were checked for nail polish. Moving on to the next person, I dipped my finger into the indelible ink, tissuing it dry moments after. Then, I was handed a slip of ballot paper. I marked it in secrecy behind a booth, folded it and put it into the box in the middle of the room. It was over in minutes.

Malaysia GE14 Queue

I had updated my address directly at the SPR office in Kepong over a decade ago so I needn't fly back to my hometown to vote. If I hadn't, I'd be one of those rushing to purchase flight tickets home, keeping my fingers crossed that it'd be cheap and there'd be seats available. Could have easily been a boo-hoo sob-sob situation for me in many ways.

Anyway, I'm glad I did as the election scene in Kuala Lumpur is pretty exciting. There were many eateries offering free breakfast and drinks to voters. Some gave discounts. There are even shops offering free services for the day. So many incentives to do our duty but really, wanting a better Malaysia should be motivation enough.

We were blessed with a free packet of nasi lemak and a cup of teh tarik when we popped into Plan B, Publika for breakfast. Not really expecting anything, we had already ordered bagel and eggs. So it was a pleasant surprise when they placed it on our table seeing that we had already voted - our inked finger being the proof.

Plan B - Nasi Lemak for GE14

Plan B - Bagel and Eggs

That night, we stayed up late to catch the results. We weren't alone. Friends and family whatsapped my phone with continuous updates but then it slowed to almost nothing all of a sudden. The results stopped coming in and it frustrated many Malaysians - we knew that something not bersih  was going on!

It was a historical moment for us as news spread that the opposition had pulled off a shocking election win.

Many were glued to the TV the next day awaiting the swearing in of a new Prime Minister, with as many discussing how to remove the indelible ink from their finger online. The ink started out light purple for us and was almost a dark dirty brown by the time we reached home. My friend Kathy had the answer - clorox.

Stained Index Finger - Indelible Ink GE14

Patriotism demands the ability to feel shame as much as to feel pride.

We should be proud of our country when we have done something to be proud of,

when we have lived up to our own standards.

But the flip side of genuine pride is being able to recognize when we have fallen short,

and to hold ourselves to account.

~ Anne-Marie Slaughter