The National League for Democracy insists it will appoint the chief minister and government for Rakhine despite protests by the Arakan National Party which won a majority of the state’s elected seats in last November’s elections.
However the NLD will consult with all “ethnic” parties and will not discriminate against any of them, NLD central committee member U Nyi Pu said, noting that this policy of exercising the president’s right to appoint chief ministers extended to all of Myanmar’s 14 states and regions.
The ANP, which largely defends the interests of the state’s Rakhine Buddhist majority, says it should be given the right to form the state government. On January 19 it warned that it was ready to position itself in opposition “for the interests of the Arakan people”.
Rakhine was the only state or region where the NLD was beaten into second place in the general elections. But because of the 25 percent of seats allocated to the military, the ANP fell just short of winning an overall majority in the state government. (Courtesy of Myanmar Times)
