NLD chooses 80 pc of current lawmakers for coming election

NLD chooses 80 pc of current lawmakers for coming election
The chair and vice-chair-1 from the ruling National League for Democracy were seen after the first-day meeting of candidate selection.
The chair and vice-chair-1 from the ruling National League for Democracy were seen after the first-day meeting of candidate selection.
Published 24 July 2020

Yangon—The ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) has chosen 80 per cent of its current lawmakers as candidates for the 2020 General Election, including its chair Daw Aung San Suu Kyi who currently acts as Myanmar State Counsellor and Vice-Chair-1 U Win Myint who serves as the President. 

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will run for a lower house parliamentary seat in Kawmhu Constituency and Vice-Chair-1 U Win Myint for a lower house parliamentary seat in Tamwe Township Constituency. 

At the NLD’s CEC meeting at the temporary headquarters (branch) held in Nay Pyi Taw, the party chose the candidates for the coming election from 21 to 23 July. 

Apart from Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein, the Nay Pyi Taw Council Chair and Region and State Chief Ministers will run for the seats. 

A total of 1,131 candidates from the NLD will run for the parliamentary seats in the election—319 seats for lower house parliament, 162 for the upper house parliament, 622 for the region and state parliaments and 29 for ethnics affairs. 

Dr. Zaw Myint Maung said: “Candidates cover farmers. They are graduate farmers as well as farmers with a basic education background. Farmers account for around 12 per cent of candidates. The majority of candidates are educated ones. Around 80 per cent of candidates are graduates. Among them are doctors, lawyers and post-graduate degree holders.”

Female represents 20 per cent of candidates chosen by the NLD. The party did not choose 20 per cent of MPs who secured the seats in the 2015 election, due to the various circumstances, Dr. Zaw Myint Maung added. 

“To sum up, the party will not run for six seats in the upper house parliament and for 11 seats in the lower house parliament. These seats include the skipped areas. Likewise, the party will not compete in some region and state parliamentary seats. In general, the party can run for three or four seats more than the  number in 2015,” he added. 

Union Minister for Transport and Communications U Thant Zin Maung, Union Minister for Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation U Ohn Win, Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Dr. Win Myat Aye and Deputy Minister for Construction U Kyaw Lin, will run for seats in the coming election. 

“The party has chosen ethnic candidates in the respective areas on a priority basis. The NLD’s ethnic candidates from the respective areas will run for the seats,” he said. 

The NLD will not run for some seats in Rakhine and Shan States as it did not run for the seats in the previous elections, he continued. 

“We have to listen to the voices of the public because both the party and the candidates should be taken into consideration. Some said the public should look at the candidates rather than the party. But the public should also look at the party. Our party alone can form the government. There are two or three major parties. The MPs may not make any reforms if they cannot form the government. They cannot do the regional development tasks effectively,” he continued.