CLOSE to eight million Belgians will cast their votes tomorrow in a poll that could be another move towards splitting their country in two.

AS politicians increasingly shape their policies around what will get them elected, picking who to vote for has become a difficult issue for citizens.

AS Irish voters mull over who to vote for and who to punish in European and local elections on Friday, they should spare a thought for the hapless Belgian citizenry.

FOR years now Belgians have been compromising with one another in an effort to keep the country together. They have five parliaments and a power sharing arrangement that would baffle the best mathematician.