O

n March 15, Dutch voters will decide whether to entrust Party for Freedom (PVV) leader Geert Wilders to lead their country on the basis of politics of hatred. If they choose Wilders, they need to realize that they will pay dearly for playing with fire.

The Netherlands is not so huge or important to the international community that it can force other nations to accept its terms and conditions without reservation. As published in this paper on Monday, the Associated Press reported that “a small nation that has grown hugely wealthy thanks to centuries of doing business far and wide, the political mood in the Netherlands has turned surprisingly inward.”

Dutch ultranationalist leader Wilders boasted that his PVV would easily win the parliamentary election and he would be very close to forming a new government because other political parties would have little choice but to join his camp. Recent polls show Wilders will likely win 30 of the 76 parliament seats needed to form a coalition government.

The Dutch people will have to bear unbearable consequences if they help the anti-Islam and anti-migrant politician achieve his dangerous ambition.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte insisted on Sunday that his People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) would not work with Wilders’ party.

Wilders strongly believes that the Netherlands can stand alone without cooperating with other countries. He vowed to close borders to asylum seekers and migrants from Muslim countries, shut all mosques and ban the Quran. He also wants the Netherlands to quit the European Union.

Is Wilders delusional? And if so, why have so many Dutch people fallen in love with him?

There is growing frustration and disappointment among the Dutch people, as well as in many member states of the EU, because the waves of migrants from war-torn countries and cheap workers from the East have led to a reduction in quality of life for them.

The election of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States and the Brexit decision of British voters has apparently helped Wilders magnify his ambition. Many Americans have now begun to question their decision to vote for Trump because of his tendency to lead the US in a manner more fitting for a realty show. Many in the United Kingdom also regret voting for Brexit.

Dutch voters will determine the direction of their nation on March 15. They must ask themselves whether to let Wilder’s delusion trap them.