Public perception has been seen to be the 'it' factor that influences the voters to make a decisive decision in choosing their candidates during election.

The selection is no more focused on the party emblem but it is more on the credibility of the candidate itself.

This was the opinion conveyed by Malaysian’s leading academician, Datuk Dr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin.

According to him, the mediator plays a vital role in creating perception.

“Most public now rely on the perception and the person or the middleman who delivers the message, so the media has to play its role," said Shamsul.

Beside perception, the candidates that have a “people’s heart” and visits to the grassroots will always be the chosen one.

“In the parliamentary or state level, we are focussing too much on the people and the party, so there is a division on whether he is fair or not. On top of all, these questions are not related to any democracy but more toward consumerism,” he said.

He added the public are getting mature and wiser in making decision.

Dr Shamsul Amri said this when he was invited as a guest in 'Analisis Awani” programme.