YB HANNAH YEOH in Johor Bahru!

Come join us and YB Hannah Yeoh, member of the Selangor State Assembly this October!

Hannah, a former lawyer, will share with us her experience as a first-term state assembly person (Subang Jaya) and the latest political situation.

Date: 10th october 2010

Venue: Grand Paragon Hotel, Johor Bahru. Level 6, Diamond 3.

Time: 5pm

Admission is free. Bring your friends and family!!!!

Register to Vote this October

Come register yourself or join us as a volunteer at our voter registrations drive this month!

Date: 2nd, 3rd, 9th, 10th, 16th, 17th, 23rd & 24th October 2010

Location: Jusco Bukit Indah

Time: 10am to 10.30pm

See you there!!

September Voter Registration Locations

Hi all

For the month of September, we will be having our voter registration drive at the following locations:-

Date: Saturday 4th, 11th and 18th September, 2010

Location: City Square, 2nd floor

Time: 10am - 10pm

Date: Sunday 26th September, 2010

Location: Southern College

Time: To be advised

Please do volunteer your time if you could and spread the word to all your unregistered friends and family.

LET'S STRIVE FOR A BETTER MALAYSIA.

REGISTER TO VOTE.

Forum on the Importance of Voter Registration

The tireless Thomas Fann has been going around the country creating awareness on the importance of voter registration. Finally, he is back in JB and would like to share this inspirational talk with us. In addition, Steven Choong will be sharing his insights on our nation's current affairs.

"The Importance of Voter Registration in Nation Transformation" by Thomas Fann &

"An Update on Current Affairs" by Steven Choong

Date: Friday, 20th August 2010

Time: 6pm

Location: 61, Jln Kuning 3, Taman Pelangi. (Behind CIMB Bank on Jalan Kuning)

Please feel free to bring your friends and family. Help us heighten voter registration awareness and do our part in making our nation a better place for our future generations.

See you there!!

Interesting.....

We should encourage voting in a fun way like the Aussies. Watch video!

If only we could register online like the Aussies....sigh....

But fret not! We shall continue with our voters' registration drives and not give up!

COME JOIN US AS A VOLUNTEER!

Voter Registration Locations - August

For the month of August, we will be at the following locations:-

Date: 7th, 8th, 14th, 15th, 21st and 22nd August

Location: Jusco Tebrau City and Leisure Mall

Time: 11am to 10pm

Come and register yourselves!

Spread the word to your unregistered friends and family!

Come and join us as a volunteer!

In the eyes of some Danish

"A CITIZEN NEEDS TO REGISTER TO VOTE??!!"

Last week, I met a very friendly Danish couple and their young adult daughter over a lovely dinner. When we got to dessert, the conversation led to Malaysia, our democracy, and voting system.

Danish Mum: *shock on her face* You need to register to vote???

Danish Dad: *another shocked expression* Isn't it automatic as I understand every Malaysian citizen has an identity card?

Danish 19-yr old: *confused look* After my 18th birthday, I received a letter telling me I am now eligible to vote. In school, I was taught that it is very important to vote. I cannot understand why a citizen should need to register when it is a citizen's right and if so, why doesn't every Malaysian just go and register when they can?

Imagine how dumbfounded I was at their queries. Dumbfounded and a little embarrassed. All I could utter sheepishly was "this is the Election Commission's process".

I think I've said enough. Please register to vote.

Hard Day's Night

A BIG THANK YOU to all the volunteers on Saturday in both Sutera Mall and City Square. The selfless contribution of your time has truly helped elevate voters' awareness.

Let us all keep up the good work and strive until each and every 4 million unregistered eligible voters are registered!

Persada VR Drive - 3rd July

It was a fruitful VR drive last saturday at Persada, and also at City Square and Sutera Mall.

Thank you to all the volunteers and if you were one of the many new registrants, give yourself a pat on the back!

How Do I Register?

Step 1:

Ensure you have your NRIC.

Step 2:

Visit any Post Office with online computer services.

OR

Visit SPR office at Level 6, Wisma Persekutuan (Immigration Office)

OR

Visit any SPR booths you come across (including our JPAG booths)

Step 3:

Show your NRIC and fill in an application form.

VOILA! Your forms will now be processed by SPR but it may take up to SIX MONTHS before your name is entered into the electoral roll. This is why we should not procrastinate any further and REGISTER TO VOTE NOW.

Early Elections?

Yesterday, UMNO VP Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein alerted his fellow BN politicians to "prepare themselves to face GE13".
(Resource: http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newspolitic.php?id=510854)

This has led many in the public to believe that early elections could be called by the PM, maybe as early as the first half of 2011.

TIME IS RUNNING SHORT.
REGISTER YOURSELF ASAP.
DO NOT MISS OUT ON THIS OPPORTUNITY.
LET'S RISE UP AND STEER THE FATE OF OUR NATION.

(UPDATE 2) VOTERS' REGISTRATION LOCATIONS

There will also be booths opening in Batu Pahat on top of those in Johor Bahru. Below is the complete list of all locations for July 2010.

Come join us either as a registrant, volunteer or even just to say "Hi"!

Date : 3rd & 4th July 2010
Location : PC Fair @ Persada Convention Centre
Time : 11am to 9pm

Date : 3rd, 10th & 17th July 2010
Location : City Square Johor Bahru & Sutera Mall
Time : 11am to 9pm

Date : 3rd, 4th, 10th, 11th, 17th, 18th, 24th, 25th & 31st July 2010
Location : Carrefour Batu Pahat
Time : 12 noon to 8pm


Note: As our exact location is determined by the kind management of each mall, we are unable to provide details of the registration booth's exact location. Please take a stroll around the mall and keep your eyes on the lookout for the SPR banners.

Aiya, my vote is only one vote what!

During every registration drive, I'm told by at least 15-20 people, "My one vote makes no difference la". We have on average 6 drives in a month, so I would have encountered 120 people every month who don't think they can make a difference with their singular vote. Note that this is from only ONE location.

If one volunteer from one location meets 120 eligible non-voters;
one volunteer from ten locations would meet 1200 eligible non-voters!!!

The Hulu Selangor and Sibu by election were won by BN and PR with a margin of 1,725 and 398 votes respectively. If all the unregistered voters in these two constituents believed they could make a difference and came out to vote, don't you think the outcome would have been very different???

Don't you remember the tale told to us when we were young about how its easy to break one pencil in half, but its hard to break a bunch of pencil in half?

UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL.
Each and every vote makes a difference because collectively, we have the power to determine the fate of our future generations.

4 Million unregistered voters.
4 Million chances to make a difference.

Are we going backwards instead of forward?

"The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government".
Patrick Henry (1736 - 1799)
Advocate of the American Revolution


Maybe Patrick Henry's words were a little too harsh especially the use of the word "restrain", but the principle of his thoughts back in the 18th century are on the right track. The Federal Constitution provides us, the citizens, with a right to choose and elect a competent government; whilst at the same time, provide rules and regulations on how the government is supposed to lead the nation with a duty of care.

If Patrick Henry could understand this principle 230 years ago, why are there 4,000,000 (YES, 4 MILLION) un-registered eligible voters in Malaysia who do not understand this?

If you are one of the 4 million people out there, PLEASE REGISTER TO VOTE.

Why Should I Vote?

This is perhaps the most common question asked by an eligible but unregistered voter. It is nearly impossible to answer this question as everyone votes for a different reason. However, the principle of voting is to UPHOLD DEMOCRACY, where WE THE CITIZENS have the right to STEER THE NATION into a positive direction which benefits each and every one of us, irregardless of gender, race or religion.

Before asking "Why should I vote?", try asking yourself these two very simple questions:-

Am I happy about how my country is being run?

Do I want my children and future generations to continue living in this country?


If your answer is YES, then give your current representative a pat on the back and continue voting for him/her.

If your answer is NO, then choose a representative whom you believe can make a change on your behalf.


So this is why you should vote.
Your VOTE is YOUR VOICE.
You VOTE to MAKE YOUR DECISION HEARD.



P/S: If your answer to the above questions are "I DON'T KNOW", then open your eyes and ears. With knowledge, you will get an answer.

Formal Introductions

As is customary with every first encounters, formal introductions are in order. Well, here goes:-

Hi, we're Jpag. We are a group of men and women who share one common ground, where we believe each and every citizen of Malaysia should exercise their right to vote as provided in the Federal Constitution. Our unwavering passion led us to band together to raise voters' awareness by organizing voters' registration drives across Johor Bahru and hopefully, across Johor in the near future. We stress that we are a neutral, non-partisan group whose only goal is to encourage voters to exercise their right in determining the future of our country and we will strive to educate the public towards a fair and merit-based society.

As you continue to read our blog, we hope you yourself are, or will become, a registered voter.

And if you would like to go that extra mile, do join us as we could always use more volunteers.