A Burmese Vice President has been accused of vote rigging in Burma’s general election by the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) and the National League for Democracy (NLD).
Sai Mauk Kham ,
Vice President of Burma
Dr. Sai Mauk Kham, a current Vice President and a candidate from the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), ran for a Lower House (Pyithu Hluttaw) seat in northern Shan State’s Lashio Township in the 8 November general election.
On 9 November the SNLD and NLD opposition released a joint statement to both the public and the Union Election Commission (UEC). The 'letter of objection' claimed that 11,815 advanced votes had arrived at Lashio’s election commission office at midnight on 9 November, almost eight hours after the polls had closed and the ballot boxes had been sealed shut.
Nearly all of these advanced votes, from different constituencies in the township, were for the USDP.
Despite these claims, on 11 November the UEC announced an election victory for Dr. Sai Mauk Kham.
Sai Soe Myint, an SNLD candidate who was competing against Dr. Sai Mauk Kham for the same seat in Lashio, told SHAN that the SNLD and the NLD contacted the UEC on the matter not because of the Vice President’s victory, but because of inconsistencies with the ballots.
He said: “We objected because the advanced voting process was not right. There should not be that many advanced votes. And when we look at the advanced voting ballots, they were all similar. The bags were all the same, they were very new.”
Sai Wan Leng Kham, an Upper House (Amyotha Hluttaw) candidate for the SNLD in Lashio, said that after they had filed their complaint the party had not received a response from the UEC.
He said: “We heard that the (UEC) told the media that if we wanted to file a complaint, we had to do it before the ballot box was opened. If the ballots are already opened and the results released, that complaint cannot be recognized.”
The Election Commission in Lashio Township was scheduled to hold a press conference on 12 November to clarify the controversial issue, according to the UEC.
Sai Soe Myint said: “Although a candidate has been elected as a member of parliament, we still can sue them,” suggesting that the opposition may be contemplating legal action.
According to a report published by The Myanmar Times on 9 November Dr. Sai Mauk Kham allegedly won his current Upper House seat in Lashio Township in 2010 with the help of over 26,000 advanced votes, placing him ahead of a candidate from the Shan Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP).
Neither Dr. Sai Mauk Kham, who has served as Vice President since 2011, nor his party, the USDP, could be reached for comment at the time of reporting.
By Shan Herald Agency for News (S.H.A.N)
Edited in English for BNI by Mark Inkey
