LOWER HOUSE REJECTS PR SYSTEM

The lower house of parliament decided that a “first-past-the-post” (FPTP) voting system is best suited for Myanmar. The decision was made after Myanmar’s Constitutional Tribunal announced its opinion that all other electoral systems proposed by the Electoral System Review Commission, including proportional representation (PR), were inconsistent with the Constitution. Ten Members of Parliament participated in a debate on the voting system in the lower house which concluded that the seven other systems were not in accordance with the constitution, and that FPTP is the only compatible and appropriate system for Myanmar.