EC Judges Rule Against RNDP MPs in Election Fraud Case

Pauktaw: The special tribunal of Burma's election commission in Naypyidaw has ruled against three elected MPs from the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party on charges of election fraud filed against them by their rivals from the Union Solidarity and Development Party.

The three MPs from the RNDP who lost in the case are U Kyaw Tun Aung, candidate from the national parliament, U Aung Kyaw Zan, candidate from the people's parliament, and U Maung Kyaw Thein, candidate from the state parliament. All three were elected in Pauktaw Township in northeastern Arakan State.

U Maung Kyaw Thein said the judgement by the EC was unfair and they would appeal after discussion with legal experts and senior members of their party.

"The judgement by the EC are quite unacceptable and we believe it is just an act of bullying against us because we won more than twice the votes our rivals got in the election. I received more than 16,000 votes while my rival got only 6,000 votes. It is totally unfair and we are now preparing with our seniors and legal experts in our party to submit our appeal for an amendment to the judges," said U Maung Kyaw Thein.

The RNDP, the local Arakanese ethnic party, won 34 seats in Arakan State in the election held in November 2010. Nine of those elected candidates were accused of fraud and faced charges with the election commission by their rivals from the USDP, the proxy party of the Burmese military regime.

Their cases were heard separately by the tribunal of the election commission in Naypyidaw.

U Kyaw Lwin, a candidate from the people's parliament, and U Ohn Tin, a candidate from the state parliament, from the RNDP in Kyaukpru Township, were found not guilty of fraud in their cases on 15 June.

U Hla Maung Thein, an elected candidate for the state parliament from Rathidaung Township, U Phe Than from the people's parliament, U Aung Win and U Maung Lone from the state parliament in Mraybon Township were all found not guilty on 24 June as well.

However, the tribunal of the EC has handed down guilty verdicts to the remaining three RNDP MPs who were elected from Pautktaw Township in its judgement on 6 July.

Rumors are spreading among political circles and local voters in Arakan State that the election commission tribunal received 50 million kyat from the USDP candidates to decide against the RNDP defendants.

The RNDP won the won a majority of the seats fielded in Arakan State in the last November election, but the USDP, the military proxy party, controls the regional state government after appointing its candidates as chief minister and ministers for most of the state ministries.