The writ of elections will be filed over the next three weeks.

From there onwards, the countdown to our 2018 general election will begin.

All political parties will be out in full force campaign­ing and enticing voters for their votes, convincing them why they deserve their votes.

If trends on social media are anything to go by, we can also expect some political parties to focus on personali­ties rather than policies.

This is what all Fijians need to reject if we want our country to progress.

We have already seen one provisional candidate of the National Federation Party (NFP) facing charges based on allegations that he had said Muslims would take over Fiji.

Pradeep Chandra has been charged, but NFP has de­cided that they will continue to support Mr Chandra and he is still their provisional candidate.

We have also seen two NFP candidates resigning from the party after they were accused of rape. One has been charged and one was covered by diplomatic immunity.

We need to be wary, fellow Fijians.

Anyone who campaigns only to instil fear does not have anything to offer.

If any political party campaigns only to run down an­other political party without offering solid alternatives, they have nothing to offer.

If any political party is unable to answer how it plans to fund its initiatives, it does not have a plan.

If any political party is not openly opposing religious and racial vilification, it is either not ready to treat all Fijians as equal or will try its best to destabilise the progress and prosperity Fiji has seen over the past few years.

If any political party says that iTaukei land is not safe, it is deliberately misleading the people.

You just need to ask yourself, has even an inch of your land been forcefully taken away from you?

One thing is for sure, all the talk that the military will take over the Government if FijiFirst wins again is an outright lie and that scenario will never happen.

If any political party comes around propagating this, it has no plan to provide you safety and security.

Be wary of the misinformation people hiding behind fake profiles spread on social media such as Facebook.

If they were so confident about their information, they would have confidently put their names on their posts.

Be critical.

Be aware.

Your vote will decide whether we prosper as a nation or we are dragged back to where Fiji was 31 years ago.

Fiji is a young democracy.

It has already been torn apart on racial grounds in 1987 by Sitiveni Rabuka.

The same person today leads SODELPA.

We need to have stability if we are to raise the standard of living of our people.

This is not just for us, but also for our children and their future.

JYOTI PRATIBHA

Feedback: jyotip@fijisun.com.fj