Gulf | Oman
Tribes 'select' popular candidates
Elections were conducted within some tribes to select a deserving candidate from those aspiring to contest the elections.
- By Sunil K. Vaidya, Bureau Chief
- Published: 18:12 October 27, 2007
- Image Credit: Sunil K. Vaidya/ Gulf News
- Fuad Jaffer Sajwani, a candidate from Muttrah, with an election volunteer.
Muscat: Elections were conducted within some tribes to select a deserving candidate from those aspiring to contest the elections.
A tribe in Muscat did just that when they conducted an internal election to see who polls the most votes.
"Seven candidates from our tribe had filed nominations but to avoid a division of votes we decided to back only one on the election day," Fouad Jaffer Sajwani, a candidate from Muttrah, told Gulf News yesterday.
He said the candidate who polled the highest votes stayed in the contest for the Council. Sajwani, who is the Vice-President of Central Bank of Oman, won the contest.
His volunteers, like those of the other candidates, were busy running around rallying potential voters. The voters were pampered with soft drinks and mineral water as they stood in long queues.
Sajwani reckons that he will garner 18 to 19 per cent votes from the other tribes. "In an ideal situation, I would have got ... votes from the other tribes as well," he said but admitted it would be some time before that happens.
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