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Myanmar ruling party chairman deposed ahead of polls

Thursday, 13 August 2015 10:22 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 13 August 2015 12:01 PM ]

Shwe Mann, the former chairman of Myanmar’s ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), speaks to the media during a press conference in the capital city of Naypyidaw, February 11, 2015. (© AFP)

The head of Myanmar’s ruling party has been removed from office ahead of the country’s general elections.

According to reports, Shwe Mann, the chairman of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), was stripped of his post after Myanmarese security forces swarmed the party’s headquarters in the capital city of Naypyidaw overnight.

“Police entered the party compound last night. Since then no one was allowed in or out … It is strange that armed forces have restricted a political party in this way,” Mann’s son told AFP, adding that his father’s residence is also surrounded by the “so-called guards.”

Other high-ranking government officials have also been removed from their posts, the reports added.

The photo shows (L to R) Myanmar’s Parliament Speaker Shwe Mann, Vice President Sai Mauk Kham and President Thein Sein posing for a photo prior to their meeting at the president's office in Naypyidaw, October 31, 2014. (© AFP)

Over the past months, rumors were rife that there had been a fierce power struggle between Mann, who is also Myanmar’s parliament speaker, and the country's President Thein Sein.

The USDP is the political wing of the former junta government which ruled Myanmar before the implementation of reforms and still holds a considerable sway in the country’s affairs. Both Sein and Mann were army generals, but shed their uniforms after the country’s notorious military succumbed to international pressure and declared a civil government in Myanmar.

The Myanmarese president’s office confirmed the reports of Mann’s removal from his posts, but stressed that he is not under arrest.

"This is just a party leadership affair, there is no reason to worry," said Zaw Htay of the president's office, adding that Sein’s government is only trying “to stabilize public order.”

The new developments came a day before the deadline for the candidates’ registration for Myanmar’s upcoming polls on November 8, which is considered by many as the country’s freest elections over the past decades.

Reports say Mann had refused to voice his support for the candidates loyal to President Sein.

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