Yangon – Nine minor political parties have formed a political alliance ahead of the general election scheduled for November.
The United Political Parties Alliance (UPPA) is intending to push for changes through collective strength for the betterment of the country, said party leaders as they launched the alliance in Yangon on Wednesday.
“For small- and medium-sized parties, it is better to go to the 2020 election collaboratively with mutual understanding, rather than go through independently. We believe this will bring about better results, and a fairer and freer election,” said general secretary U Myo Nyunt of the Democracy and Peace Party.
The alliance is made up of parties that were formed only after the 2015 general election and are yet to win a seat.
It also includes the Party for People, Public of Labor Party, Yeomanry Development Party, Myanmar People’s Democratic Party, People’s Party of Myanmar Farmers and Workers, National Prosperity Party and the Union of Myanmar Federation of National Politics.
Some six more parties are still in the process of discussion to join the nine-member bloc. And the bloc will also cooperate with other alliances, said U Myo Nyunt.
The UPPA plans to contest across the country, but will give priority to ethnic candidates in ethnic-majority areas, said chairman U Htay Kyaw of the Myanmar People’s Democratic Party.
The idea to establish the UPPA dates back some four years, said U Htay Kyaw.
88 Generation student leader U Aye Lwin urged the people to vote for political parties that will solve the country’s problems with a people-centered approach to boost democracy. Cooperation would solve political problems through peaceful means in harmony with other parties.
The UPPA said it expected to form a coalition government after the November election. The UPPA is the fourth electoral bloc in Myanmar after the United Nationalities Alliance, which consists of 12 ethnic parties; the Nationalities Brotherhood Federation, which has 18 ethnic parties; and the Federal Democracy Alliance of 10 parties.
Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko
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