Just hours after casting doubt over the date of the election, the Union Election Commission announced it will not be postponing the looming polls.
The announcement was made in the evening on state-run television following a meeting in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday at which a possible delay was discussed. The Union Election Commission pressed 10 attending political parties to consider postponing the November 8 election, citing flooding that continues to ravage parts of the country as a barrier to a free and fair contest.
A statement posted online said the commission had decided to continue with the election as scheduled after discussing the pros and cons of a delay with the parties.
But the sudden proposal – less than a month before the slated election day – sparked a backlash on social media and many commentators feared the worst, speculating a full blown cancellation of the polls could be in store.
Union Election Commission chair U Tin Aye was quick to dismiss allegations from some of the parties - including the National League for Democracy and the Myanmar Farmers Development Party – that the postponement proposal had anything to do with the error-ridden voter lists.
U Tin Aye told reporters after the meeting that the suggestion was floated because of concerns that parties in flood-struck areas may be hindered from campaigning, and voters prevented from reaching the polling stations. He added that the political parties summoned to the meeting had been invited on good faith, and were selected based the highest number of candidates registered.
“The election commission has the right to decide whether the election will be postponed or not. But we discussed it with the parties because the election law suggest consultation with parties to fix the election date,” he said.
Only U Win Hetin, representing the NLD, opposed the suggestion to put off the election. The proposal was backed by the USDP, the Farmers Development Party and the National Development Party, which was founded by former presidential adviser U Nay Zin Latt. Three parties were neutral, while three ethnic parties did not attend the meeting.
As the extent of the monsoon flooding – considered to be among the worst on record – has been clear for months, parties and analysts yesterday speculated flooding was a dubious excuse for considering delaying the polls.
“Flooding is not a good reason because the scope of the disaster isn’t as serious as something like Cyclone Nagris,” said U Sai Saung Si, deputy chair of the Shan Nationalities Democratic Party.
“The government approved the 2008 Constitution right after [Cyclone] Nargis. It is very clear there was another reason has behind the decision, especially if we look at which parties agreed to the postponement.”
Some said the UEC’s proposal called into question both the sincerity of the government’s willingness to hold a fair election and the election body’s political independence.
“I think the UDSP is afraid [to lose] and is trying to get rid of the NLD because the NLD has potential to win everything. And everyone knows there must be a link between U Tin Aye and the USDP,” said U Mann Kyaw Nyein, a general secretary of the Karen National Party.
While flood affected 12 of the country’s 14 states and regions in varying degrees of severity, the proposal to postpone the polls yesterday appeared to be a comprehensive, nationwide suggestion. For security reasons, the election has already been cancelled in nearly 600 village tracts in an eastern swath of the country focused on Kachin and Shan states.
Manam Tu Jar, chair of the Kachin State Democracy Party, said it was unfair to postpone the elections so close to the scheduled date as it would waste candidates’ campaign money.
“If it is postponed all our efforts are in vain and people’s hope will be lost,” he said.
