BATU PAHAT, July 10 — Although she had the option of voting by post, Yeo Lynn, 26, chose to travel all the way back from China to Yong Peng because the experience of going to a polling station and personally witnessing the atmosphere of an election bears personal meaning to her.
The second-year Master’s student in Communication at Sichuan University in Chengdu, China, was willing to endure nearly eight hours of travel and spend about RM2,000 to ensure she could fulfil her responsibility as a voter in the Johor State Election tomorrow.
Yeo said she arrived in Malaysia the day before yesterday (Wednesday) after obtaining permission from her university to exercise her democratic right as a Malaysian citizen.
“To get back to Yong Peng, I had to travel about an hour from my university to the airport in China, then spend five hours on a flight, followed by another two-hour journey from Kuala Lumpur to Yong Peng.
“As a student studying overseas, it’s not that I couldn’t vote by post, but I wanted to see and experience the excitement of the election process firsthand, especially queuing to vote and seeing the candidates campaigning,” she told Bernama today.
According to the eldest of three siblings, a one-way flight ticket cost as much as RM1,000, but she regarded the expense as a worthwhile sacrifice because a single vote can have an impact on the country’s future.
She said her determination not to miss the opportunity to vote was greatly influenced by her father, Yeo Sek Hua, 64, who has always reminded her and her siblings to fulfil their responsibility as voters whenever an election is held.
“I urge all eligible voters not to waste the opportunity to cast their vote because it only comes once every five years,” she said.
Meanwhile, Sek Hua said he has never failed to fulfil his responsibility as a voter and has always encouraged his children to do the same, regardless of their individual political party preferences.
“I strongly encourage my children to fulfil their responsibility as voters. Whoever they choose is their right. What matters is that they vote and contribute to the country,” he said.
More than 2.7 million eligible voters will cast their ballots in the 16th Johor State Election tomorrow to elect 56 state assembly representatives.
