Opposition NLD to make successful government

Myanmar's outgoing Speaker of the Union Parliament U Shwe Mann anticipated Friday that the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, would make a successful ruling government.

Winning the 2015 general election, the NLD is organizing the new government by not taking up all the available posts held but reserve for other parties and ethnic nationalities as well as for outside experts, Shwe Mann told a press conference after the end of the final session of present term of the parliament (2011-16) in Nay Pyi Taw.

However, he disclosed that no offer for taking up certain post in the new parliament or government is so far made by the winning party.

Appraising Aung San Suu Kyi's wisdom and far-sightedness, U Shwe Mann said he is willing to be made use of for the interest of the country and the people.

He further disclosed that he did made arrangement for a meeting between Suu Kyi and ex-Senior-General Than Shwe, the top leader of the previous military government, to create a favorable condition for the nation although he holds no power now but is still influential.

In his final speech at the last session of the union parliament that comprises two Houses, U Shwe Mann also called on law makers of the new parliament to inherit the good democratic practice of the previous parliament and continue to take the responsibility for the next term.

The present five-year term of the parliament, which lasted from Jan. 31, 2011, came to an end Friday and the new term of the elected parliament, dominated by the National League for Democracy (NLD), will start on next Monday.

The current term of the government will also expire on March 30 and a new government will take office on the day in accordance with the result of Nov. 8 general election in 2015.

On Thursday, the NLD nominated two new speakers of the two Houses of the next term of the parliament with U Win Myint as speaker of the House of Representatives (Lower House) and U Mann Win Khaing Than as speaker of the House of Nationalities (Upper House).

The nominated speakers are yet to be approved in the new parliament session.

The NLD won the absolute majority of the parliamentary seats in the Nov. 8 general election 2015, competing mainly against the former ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

Out of a total of 1,150 parliamentary seats at three levels of parliament, NLD dominated with 886 or 77 percent of the total seats.

Among them, 255 are in the House of Representatives (Lower House), accounting for 79 percent of the total seats in the House of Representatives, 135 or 80 percent in the House of Nationalities (Upper House) and 496 or 75.7 percent in the Region or State Parliament as well as 17 ethnic representatives to the Region or State Parliament.

Source: XINHUA