NAYPYITAW — The National League for Democracy (NLD) has accepted the resignation of two NLD lawmakers, confirmed spokesperson of the ruling party Dr. Myo Nyunt on Sunday.
The party has accepted the resignation of two Upper House lawmakers, U Pe Chit of Yangon Constituency (9) and U Tin Aung Tun of Magwe Constituency (5), Dr. Myo Nyunt told reporters in Naypyitaw after a party central executive committee meeting.
“They said that party rules were too strict and they also were not happy that they had to make cash contributions to the party,” said Dr. Myo Nyunt, adding that the two lawmakers had not previously broken any party regulations.
NLD lawmakers have to contribute 25 percent of their monthly salaries—250,000 kyats (US$150)—to the party.
U Tin Aung Tun said that he submitted his resignation in June. “I didn’t give any reason in my resignation letter. I just said that I did not want to be a party member anymore,” he told The Irrawaddy.
He said that he would explain to the public why he tendered the resignation sometime in the future.
The Irrawaddy was unable to reach U Pe Chit but NLD sources told The Irrawaddy in April that the retired colonel-turned-lawmaker was warned by the party several times.
U Pe Chit stopped cooperating with other NLD lawmakers of his constituency after he submitted his resignation in April, Lower House lawmaker U Aung Win of Hmawbi Township told The Irrawaddy.
Earlier this month, two NLD executive committee members—Yangon regional lawmaker U Kyaw Zeya representing Dagon Township (2) and Upper House lawmaker Daw Thet Thet Khine representing Dagon Township— were suspended from the party after the two made comments critical of the NLD-led government.
Political analyst Dr. Yan Myo Thein criticized that democracy within the NLD party seemed to be lower than that of political parties in one-party states.
“It is time party leaders considered decentralizing the party and reducing control of lawmakers,” said Dr. Yan Myo Thein.
The NLD has no plan to review its rules though some lawmakers have criticized it as being too rigid, said Dr. Myo Nyunt.
“We have no plan to relax the rules,” he said. So far, four lawmakers have resigned from the NLD and the party’s disciplinary committee has taken action against more than 40 lawmakers, he said.
Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.
