UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK (UNIMAS)
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION
PBF4184 POLITICAL COMMUNICATION AND PUBLIC OPINION
SEM 1 21/22
LECTURER:
DR AMMAR REDZA AHMAD RIZAL
ASSIGNMENT 1
Minor or Major Role for Public in Democratic Politics?
Submitted By:
No.
Name
Matrics No.
1.
Yuhaniss Binti Sulaiman
68345
Minor or Major Role for Public in Democratic Politics
Write 1-page essay (500 words) in either English or Bahasa Melayu voicing out your opinion
and arguments on why public were should be given minor or major role in democratic politics.
In my point of view, I believe that the public should be given a major role when it comes to
democratic politics. As well as a set of government structures, democracy relies on an array of
beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours that can manifest themselves in various ways across cultures
and societies. In research by Harrison and Boyd(2018), The term "democracy" can refer to a
variety of things, including popular governance, representative government, participation in
government, republican government, or some combination of these. The task of defining
democracy may appear straightforward, yet it is fraught with complexities. In democracies,
fundamental ideals, not standardised procedures, are the foundation.
When it comes to politics, public should be given a major role because it involves how will the
government rules the country. The public take part in the democratic process by casting a vote.
Leaders are elected by the people to represent the interests of the people and their beliefs. It is
important to acknowledge the voices of the public and not only focusing to certain issues. There
are still much voices that need to be heard by the government at the moment. There are still so
many people that suffers just because the arrogance of the government. As for what happened
to our former minster that needed to step down where the public also plays a role for it to
happened.
Not only that, there must be an equality of democracy to be practiced in our country. There
have been so much incidents involving politicians that get away with the law just because they
had the upper hand. Meanwhile, when it comes to the public there were no mercy given. There
also must be a law for the politicians that wanted to change party. They cannot simply change
just because they wanted to rule the country and to win the elections. Laws must be applied the
same to all public regardless of their status when it comes to violating the regulations. As a
result, it's important for us to be reminded that governments belong to the people, as do
governmental systems and electoral processes.
Furthermore, in order to shape a better country the public plays a big role as we are also the
one applying all the regulations. The government need to be more transparency when ruling
the country. The need to distinguish corruption in our country is particularly demanded by the
public as well. Therefore, it is crucial for the public to have a major role in democratic politics
as it have an impact on the process of making decisions. Public engagement allows decisionmakers and the general public to communicate with each other. As long as all stakeholders,
including decision-makers, have a voice, public participation encourages sound decisions. This
communication can function as an early detection for public concerns as well as a mechanism
for delivering accurate and effective information as a result of it.
Given these points, the identification and incorporation of public values into choices that have
an impact on the government can only be achieved through the major role of public engagement
in order to have a better democratic politics.
References
Harrison, K., & Boyd, T. (2018). Democracy. Understanding Political Ideas and Movements.
Published. https://doi.org/10.7765/9781526137951.00007