SECTIONS of the media and political opponents are very willing to urge political parties as to who should be endorsed as the candidate to represent them at a forthcoming election.

Most of this advice is around the issue of gender and purports to correct an imbalance in numbers between men and women in some political parties and indeed in some parliaments.

For someone like myself who lives in state and federal electorates well removed from many of those who espouse the adoption of quotas to ensure there is a more equal number of men and women endorsed for election to parliament, I believe they are telling people that quotas are more important than the basic right any elector has to be represented by the best possible person for the job.

If people chosen for endorsement as a candidate for a political party are selected because they are a man or a woman, rather than being the most capable and suitable person for the job, then we are settling for a second best representation which leads to a lessening of the ability of parliaments to provide the very best governance for our country.

The democratic process provides for either gender to offer themselves for pre-selection and it is the responsibility of those charged with choosing the candidate, to select the person they consider is best able to represent the constituents of the electorate.

After all, the chosen candidate is selected to be the representative for the people who reside in that electorate and no one else.

Advice on these matters from interests outside the relevant electorate should be viewed with great suspicion and not given a lot of credence.

Bill Ower, life member, National Party of Australia (Vic)

ONE of the most important things we need to fix in a region the size of the Mallee electorate is our transport infrastructure - roads, rail and airports.

We need a plan that puts the infrastructure in place so that as the population grows, all the facilities are already done.

Passenger rail services throughout the entire region are a must, and of course it should all be high-speed rail. At the moment, none of the new $75 billion infrastructure spend is coming to the Mallee.

A good road system is also a must to allow the safe movement of those living and working in the region as well as tourists.

Being as the Mallee electorate is 82,000 square kilometres in size, fully one third of the land area of Victoria, air travel will become more important. So the Science Party would improve all airports in the Mallee - runways, buildings, landing lights, automated landing systems and put aside areas for air ambulance and fire fighting helicopters.

It is also time for Horsham to have a domestic air terminal. With a population now of 18,000 people, this would be a necessary step in opening up the western half of the Mallee.

We can fund these projects by removing the fossil fuel subsidies that we are still paying. As at January this year that amount stands at $12 billion. Why are we still subsidising industries that have made multiple billions of dollars from digging up and selling off our resources?

Leigh Firman, Science Party candidate for Mallee

During the next few days, The Salvation Army takes the time to commemorate and celebrate who Jesus Christ is and what he has done for every one of us. He is the motivation for all that the Salvos do.

We are grateful to all who support us as we live out our Vision Statement: 'Wherever there is hardship or injustice, Salvos will live, love and fight alongside others to transform Australia one life at a time with the love of Jesus.'

In addition to our thanks, I offer you an invitation to join with the Salvos in your local area during Easter. Each of our churches conduct meetings that we would love to welcome you to. Details can be found at www.salvationarmy.org.au

We hope you have a happy and safe Easter.

Commissioner Floyd Tidd, territorial commander, The Salvation Army Australia

Letters on election issues must bear the name and full address of the writer(s).

Responsibility for election comment in this issue is accepted by Wimmera Mail-Times editor Jessica Grimble.

Writers should disclose any alliance with political or community organisations and include their phone number for verification. Election candidates should declare themselves as such when submitting letters.