One member of every household will now be allowed to vote in the elections to the Yangon City Development Committee that will now be held in the last week of December, U Kyaw MP (Yangon Region Hluttaw, New National Democracy Party, Thingangkuun Township) told Mizzima on October 2.
The election by- law introduced by YCDC in August said that while in theory everyone over the age of 18, living in the 33 townships under YCDC’s jurisdiction in Myanmar’s commercial capital could vote, the YCDC would chose 1.5 percent of the population to vote on behalf of the city.
Dr Nyo Nyo Thin MP (Yangon Region Hluttaw, Independent, Bahan Township (2)) told Mizzima she was concerned that there may still be government control over the names of the voter list.
“People should decide as a family who will vote for them, the election commission should not be the arbiters of that decision,” said the Region Hluttaw MP.
She added that although this was preferential to the previous proposed electorate, it still did not meet full democratic standards.
U Kyaw said the proposed system remained “a misuse of power.”
