The day after staging a coup d’etat, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing, commander-in-chief of the Burma Army, appointed Khin Maung Oo (aka Bu Reh) as chair of the Kayah State Administration Council.

According to a statement by the Kayah State Democratic Party (KySDP), Khin Maung Oo (aka Bu Reh) resigned from the party. Regarding this, Kantarawaddy Times tried to reach the KySDP spokesperson for their comment but no-one responded at the time of press.

A National Administration Council was formed immediately after the Tatmadaw—as they’re locally called—seized power of the country. Using Article 419 of the 2008 Constitution, the council appointed a chairperson for the State and Regional Administration Council on February 2, the second day of the coup.

Kantarawaddy Times phoned Khin Maung Oo for his comment but he didn’t pick up the call.

Under the Thein Sein government, Khin Maung Oo, who is an ethnic Karenni, served as the chief minister of Kayah State for the Tatmadaw’s Union Solidarity and Development Party, after contesting the 2010 election in Bawlakhe Township.

During the 2015 race, Khin Maung Oo ran as an independent candidate in Kayah State but failed to win any seats. His luck didn’t improve when he joined the KySDP to run in the 2020 election for Loikaw Constituency-2.

Khin Maung Oo served in the Air Force as a lieutenant colonel after graduating from the Defense Service Academy Batch-14 (DSA-14). His father, Kyaw Din, was the chair for the Karenni State People’s Council.

Photo caption: Khin Maung Oo (aka Bu Reh) as chair of the Kayah State Administration Council