People in Northern Ireland can send a clear message to terrorists by casting a vote for peace in the Assembly election, Peter Robinson has said.
Cautioning against voter “apathy”, the DUP leader said the electorate could demonstrate its commitment to the democratic process by turning out to polling stations on Thursday.
“People have the choice of whether they stay silent on this conflict between terrorism and democracy or whether they come and clearly take the side of the democrats and use their vote to show they are not prepared to go back to the days of conflict and violence,” he said.
“So we urge people whoever they might vote for to come out and use their vote but obviously we would we would urge them to vote for the Democratic Unionist Party.”
After a long campaign which many claim has failed to capture the public’s interest, the First Minister acknowledged concerns about a low turn-out.
“It’s not enough to stay at home and say: 'Well, those fellas do well, let them keep it up,'” he said.
“They actually have to vote for the policies that have been able to keep Northern Ireland moving forward and we really do encourage (them) because it is a danger that people be content and complacent and stay at home.”
At the event in Dundonald, the party’s last of the campaign, deputy leader Nigel Dodds also encouraged voters to exercise their right.
“We need to ensure that there isn’t apathy or complacency, and that is the big enemy on Thursday,” he said. "If people stay at home then the danger is that we will go backwards. People need to get out and vote, and the only unionist party that can win on Thursday is the DUP.”
Standing below a DUP poster claiming it was the only unionist party which can win, Mr Robinson responded to criticism from UUP leader Tom Elliott who asked what the DUP hoped to win given his belief it had suffered so many losses in government. “The answer is simple: it’s the election stupid," he said.
But he also encouraged party supporters to back other pro-union candidates who wanted to take Northern Ireland forward after they allocate votes to DUP candidates.
After Sinn Féin's Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said he was confident of securing transfer votes from unionists, Mr Robinson commented on the possibility of nationalists supporting his party.
“I think we have to recognise that the overwhelming majority of votes that we’ll get will come from the unionist community but I’ve made it clear that on social and economic issues, a very large section of the Roman Catholic community will find much more to support in our policies than in the left-wing policies of the SDLP or the far-left policies of Sinn Féin,” he said.
While Sinn Féin and Mr Robinson’s party had different views on how to tackle problems facing the region, he insisted they could work together.
“We are adult enough to recognise, where some others do not, that in a mandatory coalition we have to reach agreements and we have to move Northern Ireland forward, and we want to ensure that the Democratic Unionist Party has the largest influence in that executive,” he said.
Commenting on speculation the government may extend the Assembly term to five years to avoid an Assembly and general election clash in 2015, Mr Robinson said: “I think to avoid too many elections on the one day it is necessary for us to look at the issue of extending this term to five years and I understand that (North's Secretary of State) Owen Paterson will consult on this matter the minute this election is out of the way.”
Mr Robinson also refused to be drawn on whether he would nominate Mr McGuinness as first minister if Sinn Féin emerged as the largest party.
He said he was focusing on a DUP win and restated his belief that the largest tradition represented in the Assembly, unionist or nationalist, and not the largest party should hold the symbolic office.
PA