Mr. Al-Hakim: Participating in elections is a patriotic act

The head of the National State Forces Alliance, Mr. Ammar al-Hakim, affirmed on Friday that participating in the elections is a national act and not merely a luxury or an administrative step, while indicating that these elections will determine the fate of Iraq.
Mr. Al-Hakim said in a speech he delivered during an election ceremony, which was followed by the Iraqi News Agency (INA), that “participating in the elections is not a luxury and is not an administrative step, but rather a national act.”
He added, “Do not choose silence as an alternative, for then the oppressors will become bolder. Do not hesitate, for then the corrupt will expand in state institutions. Do not rely on the voices of the frustrated, for then the future of the youth and generations will be lost. And do not underestimate your right.”
He added: “Your voice is stronger than money, louder than propaganda, and more enduring than promises. It is the conscious citizen who makes the difference, not political money or false slogans.”
He explained, “We have faced attempts to undermine the size of the largest component and its well-known entitlement, and we have expressed this clearly and without favoritism,” noting that “these elections will determine the fate of Iraq and its choice of one of two paths: either the path of sustaining political stability, consolidating the discourse and behavior of moderation, dialogue and participation, strengthening the approach of reconstruction and economic prosperity, and preserving the rights of the components, especially the rights of the largest component, or the path of chaos, confusion, and tyranny through unconscious decision-making, and entering into dangerous and destructive pitfalls for the future of Iraq.”