People’s Party chairman reports irregularities in high volume of advance votes during final election stage

Mizzima

Ko Ko Gyi, Chairman of the People’s Party (PP), raised serious concerns on Sunday regarding the lack of transparency and an “unusually high” number of advance ballots cast in the military-managed general election.

“It is true that there were many controversies. Many of our candidates do not know who is eligible for advance voting,” Ko Ko Gyi said.

Speaking to reporters as he contested the Lanmadaw Township Pyithu Hluttaw seat in Yangon, the veteran activist noted that many candidates remained unaware of who was eligible for advance voting, and alleged that government departments had registered entire workforces for early balloting, potentially skewing the results.

“When it comes to counting the votes, we can verify how many advance votes are recorded in Form 13(a) and how many are in the ballot boxes. However, we do not know how the number of advance votes reached such a high level,” he said.

He said that in the first and second phases of the military-run elections, the People’s Party won one seat in the Amyotha Hluttaw and seven seats in regional or state parliaments, totaling eight seats. The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) won most of the seats. Political parties that contested the elections, including the People’s Party, have reported problems with advance voting and voter registration. However, the Military Commission announced on 2 January that the processes of advance voting, vote counting, voter registration compilation, and announcement were conducted transparently and accurately. The Military Commission held the elections in three phases, excluding more than 4,000 wards and village tracts in 263 townships. There are also 67 townships out of 330 nationwide where elections could not be held.